Akito and the Lion Guard
by PerkyGoth14
Summary: Simba and Nala's twins are finally born; a boy named Kion and a girl named Kiara. Kiara is destined to become the Lion Queen and work alongside Kopa as the Lion King when the two get older, meanwhile, Kion is the youngest and he wonders what that means for him and if he is at all useful in the Pridelands.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is set during the Lion Guard movie, but also has the first part of Simba's Pride due to the belief that The Lion Guard takes place after Kiara and Kovu first meet. We only own OC's, everybody else belongs to Disney. Remember to Read & Review!**

* * *

Cherry, Atticus, Mo, Felicity, Estelle, Akito, Vincent, Forte, and Simon were traveling to Africa. Cherry, Atticus, and Mo wore their Equestrian medallions they had earned during their high school days. After telling their children about them, they were traveling on a brisk cool day in the jungle as there were animals gathering. Today was a very special day in the Pridelands and they were specifically invited to attend this ceremony.

"This is so exciting." Akito smiled.

"All right, you kiddos ready?" Mo asked.

"Oh, yes!" Estelle beamed.

"All right, get set." Cherry said as she set Simon down on the ground next to his big sister and cousins.

"Can't wait to see the new members of the royal family." Vincent said.

Cherry, Atticus, and Mo activated their Equestrian medallions which made them glow.

In a flash of bright light, they were all suddenly lions and lionesses.

"All right, follow us." Mo told the kids as she remembered the way to Pride Rock with Cherry, Atticus, and Forte.

"Mom, why are we lions and lionesses?" Estelle asked.

"And how did we get out of our Pokeball?" Larvitar asked after coming out of its pokeball after the medallions activated.

"One: We're going to Pride Rock and we should be lions in order to blend in with the others who aren't Nala and Simba, and second, I don't know how you got out of your Pokeballs." Mo replied.

"Do the lions and lionesses not trust humans?" Teddy asked.

"They trust us, but it's best we stay as lions until we're alone with Nala and Simba." Atticus said.

"Okay..." the Pokemon shrugged with their trainers.

Cherry bent down and picked up Simon in her mouth, carrying him by the fur on his neck like many lions did with their young. "Come on, we better get moving." she alerted while muffling.

"Alright." the kids AKA lion cubs said.

"Come on, let's go." Mo advised.

* * *

They all then followed out as the winds gently blew as they were on their way to Pride Rock.

"I hope it's not far." Teddy said.

"Don't worry, Mom and Dad will get us there in one piece." Estelle soothed her Pokemon in a maternal tone of voice.

"Yay!" Teddy cheered.

"So, what does this Pride Rock look like?" Vulpix asked.

"By the way, how can a rock be proud?" Larvitar asked. "It's a rock."

Akito laughed a little. "Well, actually, they call a group of lions a 'pride'."

"That's right." Mo smiled.

"Ohh, so since the lions live there, it's called Pride Rock." Larvitar smiled.

"Yeah." Akito smiled back.

"I guess that makes sense..." Larvitar said.

"Are the hyenas still here?" Misdreavus asked.

"Hard to say, I thought they all died after Scar's defeat." Cherry shrugged.

"You're probably right." Forte said.

They kept walking along. There were other animals coming to Pride Rock as Simba and Nala stood out with Rafiki.


	2. Chapter 2

Nala had a couple of cubs in her arms, there was one with a tuft of crimson mane on its head and the other one was bare-headed, but it appeared to be cream and golden, a perfect mix of its parents' fur colors. Kopa was at the ceremony as well, not wanting to miss this for anything in the world. Timon and Pumbaa were of course there. There were also a female meerkat who sat on the warthog's back with three young meerkats, Timon's niece and nephews: Mabu, Mishka, and Monty.

"Wow, there's a lot of animals here." Vincent said.

"Welcome to the Pridelands." Forte told him and the other children as they entered.

"This is so cool." Akito smiled.

The guest lions and Pokemon waited underneath Pride Rock. Rafiki held the cubs in his arms and held them out to introduce the jungle to the future heirs to the throne. Kopa smiled proudly, he was mostly excited because he was going to be a big brother.

"I wonder what their names are." Estelle whispered.

"We'll find out soon." Mo promised.

"Um, Mom, I think she's already gone up there to find out." Vincent told her.

"What?" Mo looked down.

Estelle giggled as she ran with Teddy up to Pride Rock to meet the newest members of Simba's pride.

"Has that girl lost her mind?!" Forte asked.

"She's your daughter all right." Cherry smirked to Atticus.

"Yep, she sure is." Atticus said.

* * *

Estelle kept going along until she made it to the top of Pride Rock as Rafiki presented the newborn cubs to the jungle.

'I gotta get a closer look.' Estelle thought to herself.

"Ah, Pumbaa," Timon smiled down to the cubs. "Look at that little guys. A couple of chips off the old block! And you gotta know who's gonna raise 'em..."

"Their parents?" Pumbaa assumed.

"Okay... Get technical..." Timon paused for a moment. "But who's gonna teach him the really important stuff? Like how to belch?" he then burped suddenly. "And dig for grubs?" he then jumped down off of his best friend's back. "I'm telling ya, buddy... It's gonna be like old times. You, me... and the little guys."

Rafiki chuckled as he held the cubs. "One of them is a girl."

"Yeah, guys." Kopa added in.

"Oh, one of them's a girl..." Timon said, then his eyes widened.

" **GIRL?!** " Timon and Pumbaa gawked to each other and then fainted in the middle of the ground.

They both landed on top of Estelle as she tried to get a closer look.

"Ow..." the girl groaned slightly.

"Mama!" Teddy cried, then took her frontal paws and tried to pull her out from underneath the warthog and meerkat.

"Timon, wake up!" the adult female meerkat panicked as the pups tried to wake their uncle up.

"Did Rafiki and Kopa just say that one of the lion cubs is a girl?" Timon asked.

"Yes, Uncle Timon, one of the new cubs is a girl." Mabu said.

"Oh, how exciting!" Mishka beamed.

"Yes, it's exciting, now someone please get these two off of me!" Estelle exclaimed.

"Oh, Timon..." the adult female meerkat sighed and pulled him off gently.

* * *

Akito scampered up onto Pride Rock and lifted Pumbaa up despite the warthog being several sizes bigger than him and set him on the other side, off of his twin sister.

"Thanks," Estelle smiled and stretched. "What a relief..."

"Cherry, Atticus, Mo?" Simba asked once he saw the visiting adult lions who were not naturally lions.

"Surprise." Atticus, Mo, and Cherry said.

"It's been too long..." Simba said.

"How did you know when to come?" Nala added.

"Call it a lucky guess," Mo said with a smile, then looked down to the cubs in the baboon's arms. "And who do we have here?"

"Everyone, meet our new cubs," Simba introduced. "Kiara and Kion."

"Aw!" Estelle awed. "They're so cute!"

The cubs curiously looked to those all around them.

"I bet Mufasa is smiling down at you right now." Atticus smiled to Simba.

"I have the same feeling." Simba smiled back.

"I'm a big brother." Kopa smiled proudly.

"You sure are, buddy." Akito smiled.

"Good luck, you're gonna need it." Vincent whispered to the eldest of Simba's cubs.

"Oh, come on, how much trouble could they be?" Kopa asked.

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you." Vincent replied.

After a little while, Rafiki left Simba and Nala to rest with their new cubs and he was on his way to his tree.

"So, where are we going to sleep?" Vulpix asked.

"If you'd like to stay in our den, we have room." Nala invited.

"I've made a campsite a few miles away..." Forte said, becoming his human self once it was just them with Simba and Nala. "While you were all meeting the cubs, I've made tents, a fire, and collected some food."

"Cool!" Estelle smiled.

"Maestro, that's amazing." Mo added.

"Anything for the family." Forte modestly shrugged.

"I'd actually like to sleep in the den if you guys don't mind." Akito said.

"Same here." Larvitar said.

"I'm not surprised..." Estelle said.

"Yes, Akito was always the more adventurous one of us." Felicity added.

"Yep, he sure is." Vincent said.

Akito and Larvitar smirked to each other.

"Can I stay with you, Mama?" Teddy asked.

"Of course, you can stay as long as you'd like." Estelle smiled to him.

Teddy smiled back.

"Mama's Boy." Larvitar scoffed.

Teddy simply stuck his tongue out at Larvitar. Larvitar glared and looked like he wanted to fight.

"Don't make me drop you somewhere." Misdreavus threatened.

"Oh, alright, fine." Larvitar pouted.

Akito sighed at his Pokemon.

"What are you guys?" Nala glanced at the Pokemon.

"We're Pokemon." Larvitar, Teddy, Vulpix, and Misdreavus said.

"Pocket... What...?" Nala felt stumped.

"We're battle monsters basically," Misdreavus explained. "It's a very long story, but we are raised by, trained, and educated to fight fior sport with our very own abilities and methods."

"Yeah." Vulpix nodded.

"Well... Umm... Welcome to Pride Rock... Whatever you are..." Nala greeted with a small smile then. "First we've met humans and now we're meeting these creatures."

"This is a little strange, right?" Larvitar asked.

"Yes, very much..." Nala replied.

Estelle smiled to the newborn cubs as Kopa was watching over them right now. "So, you're a big brother."

"Yep." Kopa smiled.

"You must feel so proud." Vincent smiled.

"It's a big honor..." Kopa said.

"What were their names again?" Vincent asked as he looked to the boy and girl cub.

"Their names are Kion and Kiara." Kopa told him.

"Those are lovely names," Estelle smiled, really attached to the babies. "Oh, they're so tiny..."

"They sure are." Teddy smiled.

"Hiii..." Estelle gently cooed, wiggling her finger to the cubs.

Kion and Kiara both seem to giggle.

"Cootchy-Cootchy-Coo~" Estelle giggled with them.

Teddy pouted slightly, he seemed a little jealous that these new babies were stealing his 'mother's' attention.

"Teddy, you okay?" Larvitar asked.

"I'm fine..." Teddy folded his arms and slightly pouted.

"You don't look fine." Vulpix commented.

"Yeah." Larvitar said.

"Nothing..." Teddy turned away.

Larvitar and Vulpix frowned to their 'cousin'.

"What's wrong with him?" Misdreavus asked.

The others shrugged. Estelle giggled as she tickled the lion cubs.

"They are just so adorable." Felicity smiled.

Simon tilted his head at the lion cubs. The lion cubs simply tilted their heads right back at him. Simon plucked his finger underneath his eye duct and peeled it down, sticking his tongue out.

"Simon, what are you doing?" Felicity asked.

Simon glanced at his older sister with a low growl and shook his head.

"You are strange..." Felicity said.

"Kion sure looks like he could be a strong lion when he grows up." Vincent smiled.

"And I bet Kiara would be a nice Queen of the Pride Lands..." Estelle said. "If she could be of course... I mean, Kopa, you'll obviously be King..."

"I know I will and I hope Kiara becomes queen because I don't want what happened to Grandpa Mufasa and Great-Uncle Scar happen to me and Kiara." Kopa said.

"And I am sure that won't happen..." Felicity said with a small smile.

* * *

Simon felt a disturbance and stumbled over outside of the cave, feeling something wrong. There were two different lions hidden in the grass as they looked over to Pride Rock, but no one seemed to spot them yet. The older lion appeared to be male and looked like a scrappy version of Scar, but had crimson eyes, and there was a younger lioness cub with dark tan fur with a tuft on her head and had dark circles around her sapphire eyes.

They could see the newborn lion cubs born to Simba and Nala from where they were standing. Akito could sense the same thing before starting to growl and look out to where he sensed the danger. Simon and Akito moved out together, Simon placed a knife in his mouth as he tucked and rolled like a child homicidal spy.

"Simba had two..." the female cub told the older male. "We must tell Mother right away."

"Yeah, yeah!" the older male agreed with a nod.

The two then left together, unknowing that they were being followed.


	3. Chapter 3

Simon heard a twig snap, then tackled down Akito and held his knife against the older boy's throat, then realized who it was and calmly backed off. Akito quietly gave him the keep quiet hand, or in this case, paw sign. Simon nodded and came off of his older cousin, putting his knife back into his mouth and lightly growled.

Akito followed Simon after the two lions, both sensed these two could not be good. Rafiki was in his tree, speaking of the birth of Kion and Kiara to the late Mufasa and about how another Circle of Life is complete and the pride's future is once again secure.

Simon and Akito were not going to let these two get away they were going to find who these two lions were and why they were in the Pridelands. They kept following and appeared to end up in a dark, deserted part of the jungle which looked very scarce on food and survival. There was a small brown cub with a small tuft of black mane with emerald eyes who nearly looked like a cub version of Scar.

 _'This must be a bad part of the Savanna.'_ Akito thought to himself.

Simon gestured for Akito to follow and shushed him. Akito nodded as he followed. The cub then saw a bug and then pounced on top of it with a smirk. However, he smiled gently and let the insect go out of his paws.

" **KOVU!** " a sharp female voice called.

 _'That must be the mother.'_ Akito thought to himself.

The cub nervously looked up as a rogue lioness came up with a torn ear and eyes red as blood.

"Don't let it go..." she snarled to the young cub. "What's the matter with you?"

"But Mother!" the cub spoke up. "He wasn't hurting anyone-"

"There is no room for weakness here, my son," the lioness nearly sneered, pulling the cub closer toward her. "Remember... Scar took you in and accepted you as his own son."

"Took him in?" Akito whispered to himself.

The cub seemed doubtful of his mother's statement. "But he wasn't my father."

"No... But he chose you to become the next King," the lioness replied. "When you rule, we shall no longer be forced to live in these dry, barren, disgusting, pathetic, termite-infested Outlands!"

* * *

The lion cubs were now rushing over to the lioness to tell her the news from the Pridelands.

"Are those two her children as well?" Akito whispered.

Simon slowly nodded, it was ambiguous, but he noticed that the cubs were calling the lioness 'Mother'.

"We were there, in the Pride Lands," the male cub said. "We saw the whole thing!"

"At Pride Rock, we saw everything!" the female added in.

"We saw Simba's cubs!" both of the cubs told the adult lioness.

'Why would she send her own children out to the Pridelands just to find out about the baby cubs?' Akito thought to himself.

"What?" the lioness asked. "Vitani, what did you see?"

"Simba's new cubs are a boy and a girl!" the female cub replied.

"What could she be planning by finding out about what gender the cubs are?" Akito whispered to himself.

Simon put his hand up and gestured for Akito to be silent as they were spying on the rogue lioness. He could tell that she was dangerous. The lioness seemed delighted that one of the new cubs in Pride Rock was a girl and she spoke to Scar her 'beloved'. The male cub was nervous at first of the mention of Scar, but the female cub who was named Vitani reminded him that Scar was dead.

Akito gestured to Simon, telling him that they should go back to the Pridelands and warn the others. Simon nodded to him, he then crawled back with Akito. Akito kept a close eye on the rogue lions in the Outlands and went off with his younger cousin.

"Look... at the Pride Lands, my pets," the rogue lioness told her cubs after it was set to train the youngest cub named Kovu to fight for Pride Rock like Scar did against Simba. "So green... so inviting. That is our home... that is where we belong. And soon, my beloved Scar... we shall reclaim your kingdom."

Akito and Simon glared to this lioness as they were on their way back to their camp and to the Pridelands where Simba was the rightful king and Kiara would even be queen by his side, but something else would become of Kion to fulfill his destiny another way.


	4. Chapter 4

Pumbaa was walking off alone while Timon was with Tesma and his niece and nephews.

"Hey, Pumbaa, where you going?" Estelle asked the warthog.

"Oh, just walkin' since Timon's busy." Pumbaa smiled to the young girl.

"You know, you should get a girlfriend." Estelle said.

"Yeah... I guess..." Pumbaa shrugged. "Timon's got Tesma, Simba's got Nala..."

There was a log crawling with bugs and someone appeared to be stuck in it.

"Hey, you guys want a bug smorgasbord?" Pumbaa invited with a grin.

"Uh, we'll pass for another time..." Vincent put his hands up nervously.

"Oui, oui." Felicity agreed with a nervous smile.

Pumbaa chuckled. "Ya talk funny, Felicity, I like it..." he said, referring to her French speaking, he then came to the log.

"Felicity is speaking French." Estelle told him.

"Uh, thank you, Estelle..." Felicity muttered about the language barrier.

Pumbaa smiled as he spotted a few dung beetles as they were going off the log and wandering on a trail. The warthog smiled as he went after them.

Vincent saw a small creature which appeared to be a baby honey badger that was stuck in the log, then plucked it out, then set it down. "There you go, little guy, go back to your family." he smiled.

The baby honey badger looked around, then smiled to warthog, and followed after him like a newborn chick or a lost puppy.

"Looks like he wants to live with Pumbaa." Vulpix said.

The honey badger kept following the warthog who followed after the dung beetles and hummed a song to himself.

"Let's see if we can find this little guy's parents." Estelle said.

"Unless he is... An orphan..." Felicity said.

"Do you think so?" Vincent asked.

"He is following after Pumbaa and he is all alone..." Felicity speculated. "It seems possible."

"Yeah," Misdreavus nodded. "And Estelle, I think Teddy is upset about something."

"Teddy?" Estelle asked.

The others went after the honey badger and Pumbaa, giving Estelle and Teddy some privacy.

* * *

"Teddy, what's wrong?" Estelle asked her Teddy Bear Pokemon.

"Oh, nothing," Teddy pouted firmly. "'Cept that ever since we met Kiara and Kion, you were so busy with them that you forgot all about me!"

"What? Teddy, that is not true," Estelle said. "Listen, Teddy, even though Kion and Kiara may be cute, I will always love you, no matter what."

"Always?" Teddy asked.

"Always." Estelle promised with a smile.

The two then shared a hug.

"I'm sorry, Mama..." Teddy whispered.

"It's okay, you were just being jealous of Kion and Kiara getting all the attention." Estelle soothed the Teddy Bear Pokemon.

"Yeah... A little..." Teddy said.

"It happens to the best of us..." Estelle relaxed. "I still remember when Tommy Pickles was jealous when his brother Dil was born."

"So, even humans can get jealous?" Teddy smiled.

"Everybody gets jealous, Teddy," Estelle put her arm around him. "Sometimes even me."

"You?" Teddy's eyes widneed. "Not you, Mama!"

"Oh, yes." Estelle nodded.

"When do you get jealous?" Teddy asked.

"I was a little jealous of my friend Kelly once." Estelle said.

"Really?" Teddy asked. "Why?"

"Because she gets to have sisters," Estelle explained with a small smile. "Don't get me wrong, I love Akito and Vincent very much, but I'm the only girl and sometimes, I wish I had a sister."

"It would be nice, wouldn't it?" Teddy asked.

"I always thought so..." Estelle smiled. "Just remember, Kiara and Kion are cute cubs, but you'll always be my little Teddy... Even when you're a full grown Ursaring."

Teddy smiled back, feeling much better now. "What does an Ursaring look like anyway?" he then asked his mother.

Estelle was a little worried about telling Teddy since he was only a baby and got scared very easily. "Uh, well, you'll be big and strong."

"Cool!" Teddy smiled.

"Yeah, you're gonna make me proud, but let's enjoy little teddy weddy for now." Estelle said before tickling him.

Teddy giggled, cheering up and forgetting all about his jealousy from Kiara and Kion.

* * *

Pumbaa noticed the honey badger had been following him around and seemed attached to the warthog somehow. "Now, now, run along, little fella... Your family must be missin' ya."

The honey badger didn't answer to him and just came closer and closer to the warthog and hugged him.

Felicity giggled. "Maybe it thinks you are his papa."

"Yeah." Misdreavus smiled.

"Oh..." Pumbaa said, then tilted his head. "So, what's your name, little guy?" he then asked the honey badger.

The honey badger was just a baby, but his name was slightly audible, though it sounded strange out loud. "Bunga!"

"Bunga, huh?" Pumbaa smiled. "Well... I'm, uh... Your Uncle Pumbaa... Since you have nowhere else to go, I'm gonna take real good care of you, and my best buddy Timon and I raised a lion cub once."

Bunga seemed to smile at Pumbaa in high admiration and acceptance.

"Hey, he's smiling at me!" Pumbaa beamed.

"Yep, which means, he likes that idea." Felicity smiled.

"Okay, Bunga..." Pumbaa bent down and picked up the baby honey badger over his head. "We're gonna be a family now!"

"Unca... Pumbaa..." Bunga babbled out with a smile.

Pumbaa smiled back up to the baby honey badger. The others smiled as this looked like the start of a beautiful friendship.

* * *

Meanwhile, Atticus, Mo, Cherry, and Forte were inside the cave after the newborn cubs were getting to sleep.

"So it's decided then," Simba said as he lay next to Nala with their human friends who were all grown up now with children of their own. "Kiara will be Queen alongside with Kopa so it doesn't end up like my father and Uncle Scar, and Kion will become the Lion Guard."

"Indeed." Forte nodded.

"So, both Kiara and Kopa will rule Pride Rock after you, Simba?" Mo asked.

"Yes, Kiara's the older twin between her and Kion, so he'll be the Lion Guard." Simba explained.

"What's the Lion Guard anyway?" Atticus asked.

"Yeah, we've never heard about it." Mo said.

"I'm going to tell Kion someday when the cubs are old enough, perhaps you'd like to listen in as well," Simba offered. "Rafiki told me when we found out Nala was going to have twins after Kopa was taken to what you humans call a 'zoo'."

"Yeah and you can thank our youngest son for getting Kopa back to where he belongs." Atticus smiled.

"And we're grateful and thankful for that." Nala smiled back.

"I don't know what we would do without him..." Simba added with a smile. "Let's just hope nothing happens to Kiara and Kion."

"We'll help in any way we can." Cherry offered.

The lion couple smiled, feeling blessed to have friends like them. Akito and Simon then came into the cave, panting slightly.

"And were where you boys?" Mo asked.

"There's an evil lioness in the lands back there..." Akito pointed miles back.

"Evil lioness?" Forte asked.

"Zira..." Simba said under his breath.

"Anyways, two of her children were here in the Pridelands." Akito informed them.

"Zira had cubs?" Mo asked.

"You probably don't remember them," Simba said. "But she and Scar had a son named Nuka and they took a daughter from one of our old friends and named the cub 'Vitani'."

"Poor Tama hasn't been the same after that day..." Nala sighed about their old friend.

"That explains why that lioness cub didn't look anything like her mom." Akito said, referring to Vitani and Zira.

"Yes, Vitani is actually Tama's cub." Nala nodded.

 _'That lioness is no lioness at all, she's a monster.'_ Akito thought to himself with a growl.

Simon then seemed to speak only in hand gestures and quiet noises.

"There was another cub, Simon?" Cherry asked.

Simon nodded, then did more gestures, getting on all fours and put his hands over his head with his fingers waving to look like a crown.

"Zira's youngest cub is being trained to be the new king to overthrow you, Simba," Cherry then translated to the current lion king of the jungle. "His name is Kovu."

"So, she's training him at such a young age?" Akito asked.

Simon glanced at Akito and put his palm to his face.

"Duh." Cherry translated.

"Anyway, what do we do now that Zira knows about the cubs?" Mo asked.

"We have to be extra careful..." Simba cautioned. "We can't risk anything and we'll have to make sure the cubs stay on the territory marked for them. Zira swore revenge after I banished her to the Outlands and you guys left here for the first time."

"That's right." Atticus said.

"She's always been set for killing Kopa for revenge," Simba said. "Every time he would go off to play around Timon and Pumbaa, she always tried, but thankfully, she never got the chance."

"I'd hate to imagine what would happen if she succeeded," Nala agreed. "Losing him to those poachers was a nightmare enough and making him live in a cage with other lions was one thing, but having him killed would be a far worse other."

"So then, no matter what, we'll make sure that the cubs are watched over." Atticus said.

"We would appreciate your help." Nala said.

"No worries, human parents are just as protective and supportive as animal parents," Mo soothed. "Especially when it comes to me and my babies."

"It's true." Atticus said.

"Thanks, you guys..." Simba smiled.

The others smiled back. Eventually, it was time for bed and the cubs were growing fast during their human friends' stay and there would be adventures awaiting for them just as well and where it would show their destinies.


	5. Chapter 5

Kiara and Kion grew to make friends with other cubs, and Kion, well, he made all sorts of different friends. He became friends with Bunga, the honey badger who Pumbaa had adopted after being unable to find out where the honey badger's real family could had been, but they were both a family now since they didn't have anybody else. Timon also offered to help Pumbaa and was proud of his best friend for finding himself someone to give him good company in a family and friend sense.

Timon even started to like Bunga after the honey badger had helped them get the most rare bugs of all. Mabu, Mishka, and Monty liked Bunga like a big brother, especially since their Uncle Timon and now Aunt Tesma had raised them and they were not forced to dig tunnels like Timon did when he was a misfit meerkat back in his colony before he had met Pumbaa. Kopa loved being a big brother, even if it did have its ups and downs.

The ups were that he got to teach somebody something and look out for them, but the downs were having to give up some attention, and with two babies around, that sometimes wasn't easy, but Vincent and Felicity helped him with that since they could relate a lot, especially Felicity. The Pokemon would at times help them with the cubs. One day was going to be one to remember, especially for one specific cub. Kiara came out of the cave first and looked out to the jungle, she was excited and was about to run off to explore it all for herself.

"Whoa!" Simba stopped his daughter with a smile. "Where do you think you're going in such a hurry?"

"Daddy!" Kiara wiggled in her father's grip, a little irritated and impatient, but she giggled as she tried to escape his grasp. "Let go!"

"Now, I just want you to be careful." Simbra told her.

Kiara nodded until she saw a passing butterfly, then tried to pounce after it and giggled in mild amusement and excitement.

"Kiara, are you listening?" Simba stepped on her tail to keep her from wandering off. "Accidents can happen. You could easily get hurt, or stepped-"

"...Hurt, or stepped on, or even get lost." Kiara finished for him, having heard this millions of times before with Kion and was sure that Kopa was given the same lesson when he was their age.

Kion came out ready for the day as well as Kopa as they both came out of the cave. Nala came out with them and smiled down to her boys as she then went over to Simba's side as they talked before Kiara could go around the Savanna.

'Dad's doing the lesson again.' Kion thought to himself with a groan.

"Oh, not this again...' Kopa also groaned to himself.

Nala walked over with a gentle laugh. "Mind your father, Kiara."

Kiara giggled to her mother. "Yes, Mom."

"And stay away from the Outlands." Simba then sharply warned.

"Nothing there but a bunch of backstabbing, murderous Outsiders!" Zazu added in as he flew by the lions' sides.

"Zazu's right, you can't turn your back on them." Atticus said as he came out of the cave and joined them.

"Really?" Kiara asked. "How come, Uncle Atticus?"

"Never mind that now, just run along." Atticus said.

"Your uncle is right." Simba said.

"But, guys, I-" Kiara spoke up.

"You'll understand someday," Simba promised. "Go on."

"Dad..." Kiara tilted her head.

Two young lionesses around Kiara's age came, one had grassy green eyes and another one had midnight blue eyes.

"Ah, good morning, Zuri and Tiifu." Simba greeted the lioness cubs.

"Good morning, Your Highness." Zuri and Tiifu bowed.

"Run along with your friends now." Atticus told the lioness cub.

Kiara giggled, then ran off Pride Rock to go with Zuri and Tiifu.

"And stay on the path I've marked for you!" Simba called as the cubs went off to play.

Nala chuckled to their daughter. Kion looked and saw his best friend Bunga and decided to go and play with him. There was a cheetah cub that was wandering around the grasslands and appeared to be lost.

"Simba, who does Kiara remind you of?" Mo smirked. "Hmm?"

"Huh? What? Who?" Simba looked clueless.

"She's just like you when you were young." Nala replied, knowing what Mo was referring to.

"Exactly," Simba replied and looked back out as Kiara left with her 'advisers'. "Do you realize what dangers we put ourselves in?"

Nala decided to pin her mate to the ground out of nowhere. "Don't you mean the dangers you put us in?" she then asked.

The two looked to each other before chuckling and nuzzled against each other.

"Simba, there's no need to worry, she'll be fine." Cherry told him as she walked by to see the two lions on the ground together, Nala still having pinned him down successfully.

"Cherry's right." Nala smiled before getting off him and walking back into the cave.

Simba didn't look so sure, once he was alone, he asked Timon and Pumbaa to keep an eye on Kiara today and he was sure that she was bound to run off.

* * *

"Kion, look over there." Bunga pointed to the lost cheetah cub.

Kion looked to where Bunga was pointing to find the cheetah. "She looks lost." he said.

The cheetah looked to them and zipped off.

"Huh, what's up with her?" Bunga wondered. "Whatever... Let's just play... Whatya wanna play today, Kion?"

"How's a round of 'Baobob Ball'?" Kion smirked to his best friend.

"Okay, but you'll never win." Bunga smirked back.

"Is that a challenge?" Kion smirked. "If I were you, I'd be worried about losing to a real lion like me!"

"You know what my uncles always say," Bunga replied.

"I know, I know, 'Hakuna Matata'." Kion replied.

"Go on and teach him what a lion can do, little bro." Kopa smiled.

"You got it." Kion grinned.

"Oh, it is on!" Bunga laughed.

The two best friends started to play their favorite game.

Kopa smiled to them.

"Hey, wait, come back, I just wanna play!" Kiara continued to chase the butterfly.

"Kiara, wait up for us!" Zuri called out.

Tiifu panted. "She runs... Way too fast!"

Kiara kept on chasing after the butterfly until she saw it land on a rock. "Ah..." the lioness smiled eagerly and darkly. "The mighty hunter has cornered her prey..." Kiara began to get ready to pounce on the butterfly.

Hopefully this time, she wouldn't get any interruptions. Unfortunately, she missed it as the butterfly flew away before she could catch it.

She then growled and tried to go after the butterfly a little more, but then got a view of the Outlands which distracted her from her previous motive. "Whoa... cool! The Outlands! I wonder what's out there..."

Zuri and Tiifu came to her side, looking out to the Outlands too, but only in fear, while they were looking out to the Outlands, there was something in the grass, moving towards them.

"I gotta check this out, guys..." Kiara said.

"But your dad said not to..." Zuri bit her lip.

"Even our parents won't let us go." Tiifu added in.

"Oh, come on, you guys, grow a backbone." Kiara said.

Zuri and Tiifu bit their lips nervously. Kiara decided to take a closer look. Kopa was wondering what to for himself, then gasped once he saw his sister and her friends were close to the Outlands. And where he began to get closer to them along with Timon and Pumbaa. The girls were about to look closer, but looked behind them and instantly screamed. Timon, Pumbaa, and Kopa then screamed back in fright and surprise. And where the three lioness cubs all fell off the rock into the water.

"Ooh, don't worry, Kiara, Uncle Pumbaa's comin'!" the warthog called before jumping after the lioness cubs, splashing into the water.

Kopa glanced at the meerkat. "And just how are you going to explain this one to Dad, huh?"

"Oh, no, uhh, let's see, uh..." Timon stammered before practicing an explanation for Simba. "'Gee, Simba, the good news is, we found your daughter and her friends. The bad news is, we dropped a warthog on them... That's not gonna be a problem, is it'?"

"Kiara? Tiifu? Zuri?" Pumbaa asked while not knowing was sitting on top of the three lioness cubs.

"Pumbaa!" Timon called.

"Uncle Pumbaa, let us define **BABY _SITTING_!** " Kopa exclaimed.

Pumbaa looked down and smiled nervously, getting up from the lioness cubs. "Sorry..."

The cubs coughed and sputtered from the water. Kopa got down to the four of them and got the girls out of the water.

"Now, Princess Kiara, as Simba's daughter, you know better than to go off all alone." Pumbaa scolded.

"But I wasn't alone!" Kiara said. "Zuri and Tiifu were with me!"

"She's got you there, Uncle Pumbaa." Kopa had to agree with his younger sister.

"Well... Still... You could've been hurt." Pumbaa then continued.

This instantly panicked Timon. "Hurt! Oh... Simba would kill us! You didn't slip a disc, did you?"

"Yeah, thanks for worrying about us..." Zuri deadpanned as she stood with Tiifu.

"You two okay?" Kopa asked, checking if they had any bruises.

"We're fine, thanks..." Tiifu smiled to Kopa.

"Aside from almost drowning..." Zuri slightly rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, sorry about that." Pumbaa smiled sheepishly.

Tiifu and Zuri merely scoffed and rolled their eyes as the warthog and meerkat fussed over their royal friend.

"Guys, I think she's all right." Kopa said to Timon and Pumbaa.

"Catch a fever?" Timon continued anyway. "Get a hangnail?"

"Timon!" Kiara grunted in mild annoyance.

"I had one once." Timon said.

"Very painful!" Pumbaa empathized.

"Excruciating!" Timon added in before taking a branch like an umbrella and held it over the lion princess. "Darling, with your complexion, you should stay out of the sun."

Kiara was really annoyed and decided to swat the branch away.

"What?" Timon glared. "Do you wanna wrinkle?"

"Would someone please just listen to me?" Kiara groaned.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't listening," Timon replied. "Did you say something, Princess?"

"Were they always like this?" Kiara asked Kopa.

"Nope." Kopa shook his head.

Kiara sighed. "I'm not just a princess, you know," She then said to the meerkat and warthog. "That's only half of what I am!"

"Oh, uh, what's the other half?" Pumbaa asked, taking that a little too literally.

Kiara wasn't sure how to answer that.

"Well, while you're figuring that out, let's eat." Timon said as he went with Pumbaa to 'rustle up some grub'.

"Oh, no, I think I know what he means by that." Kopa said.

* * *

"Grubs!" Timon beamed.

"The other white meat." Pumbaa added in.

Tiifu and Zuri looked absolutely disgusted.

"And so high in protein." Timon smiled as he showed the bugs to Kiara.

"Ew, gross!" Kiara cringed, very disgusted, even more than Simba was when he tried bugs for the first time when he met Timon and Pumbaa.

"No?" Timon frowned before offering to Kopa and Kiara's friends. "Kids?"

"No, thank you." Kopa, Zuri, and Tiifu declined.

Timon hummed about their declines, then offered the grubs to his best friend. "How 'bout you, big boy?"

Pumbaa sniffed with a smile. "Ah... Love grubs!"

"Not like!" Timon smiled to him.

"Love!" Timon and Pumbaa then said together.

"Of course." Kopa rolled his eyes, not finding how they could love to eat bugs.

* * *

Tesma was walking with the pups she helped her boyfriend raise. "Timon?~"

Timon turned and smiled to the female meerkat. "Hey, Tesma!" he then looekd down to his niece and nephews. "Aw, no..."

"Aw, yes," Tesma replied. "You are babysitting."

"But me and Pumbaa and Kopa are supposed to watch over Kiara and her friends." Timon said.

"You can do both." Tesma said.

Timon's eyes widened. "But... But... But..."

"I have to gather food for us and your niece and nephews are a handful to do with," Tesma replied. "I'll make it up to you."

"Oh, fine." Timon pouted.

"Good boy..." Tesma patted her boyfriend's head. "I'll be with your mother then."

"All right, all right..." Timon groaned.

Mabu, Mishka, and Monty then tackled their uncle and laughed. But then Pumbaa spat out the bug he ate because he didn't like it.

"Eww..." the young meerkats recoiled in instant disgust.

Tesma sighed and went off to gather food with Timon's mother.

"Oh, you always do that!" Timon glared at his best friend. "You take a bite out of every one, and then put it back. It drives me crazy!"

"But you can't tell from the outside which are the real slimy ones!" Pumbaa retorted which resulted in an 'intelligent debate' between Timon and Pumbaa.

* * *

Kiara rolled her eyes, before she smiled and saw her human friends, then decided to go with them. "Come on, guys," She told Zuri and Tiifu. "We're outta here."

"No, thanks, we're staying right here and nothing you can say will change our minds." Zuri whispered to her.

"Would you rather listen to these two talk about bugs?" Kiara replied.

"I'm with her, let's go." Tiifu said, going the opposite direction of the Outlands.

"Yeah, good point." Zuri agreed, going with Tiifu.

Kiara ended up crossing the river.

"Kiara!" Kopa's eyes widened. He went after her while Timon and Pumbaa continued to argue.

Kiara crossed a log over the river, but then tumbled and got nervous as she started to fall over, rolling down a small hill.

"Aw, man!" Kopa rushed over to his sister.


	6. Chapter 6

Kiara ran into Zira's youngest cub by accident.

Kovu then got up and snarled at the Lion Princess of Pride Rock. "Who are _you_ , Pridelander?" he then asked, not recognizing her since he hadn't seen her like Nuka and Vitani did after she and Kion were born.

Kopa came over and protected his little sister and started to growl at Kovu. Kovu glared at Kopa and growled at him. Kiara looked nervous, she hunched herself back and tried not to turn her back on Kovu, remembering what she was told about the Outlanders. Every time Kovu would move around to get to Kiara, they would move the other way which confused the Outsider cub.

"What is she doing...?" Kovu asked about Kiara's estranged behavior.

"Our father says to never turn your back on an Outsider!" Kiara glared at the dark cub, coming by Kopa's side.

Kovu smirked to that. "You always do what Daddy says?"

"No!" Kiara glared.

"Bet ya do!" Kovu continued. "Bet your Daddy's Little Girl and I bet your big brother's a Mama's Boy!"

Kopa growled.

"An Outsider doesn't need anybody," Kovu walked along coolly. "I take care of myself!"

"Really?" Kiara sounded awed as she followed him. "Cool..."

Kopa followed after them only for him to hear a noise from under them. Kovu smiled casually before he looked worried for a moment.

Kiara looked behind and then saw crocodiles were coming for them which made her scream. " **RUN!** "

Kopa hit the crocodile before running off with the two cubs. Kovu and Kiara ran off, panting heavily for their lives. Kopa started doing the same as soon as he caught up with them. The crocodiles snarled and lunged for the cubs, but so far, did not succeed, thankfully enough. Akito, Vincent, Felicity, and Estelle gasped at the sight. Simon seemed to smile at the bloodbath.

"Quick, you two, follow me!" Kopa called out to the two cubs.

"Are you crazy?!" Kovu's eyes widened at the older cub.

"Listen to him!" Kiara agreed with her big brother, trusting him to guide them to safety.

"Well, alright." Kovu said before following the older cub.

"Stay close on my tail." Kopa instructed the younger lion cubs, even if one of them was an Outsider.

"You got it." Kiara and Kovu told him as they continued to follow him.

* * *

"We have to tell somebody." Estelle said to her brothers and cousin.

"But whom?" Felicity replied.

"We have to tell Simba." Vincent said.

"You think that's a good idea?" Akito asked.

"Whatever, we just can't stand here while Kopa, Kiara, and that other cub are in trouble!" Estelle flailed her arms, deeply concerned about the cubs being among the crocodiles.

Akito sighed, already knowing that Kopa and Kiara would be in trouble, but it was better than them being dead, so he decided to go back to Pride Rock the only fastest way possible, flight. The others followed after him while Kopa led his little sister and the Outsider cub to safety.

* * *

So far, it looked like the worst was over.

"Move it!" Kopa told Kovu after jumping on top of one of the crocodiles slamming its mouth shut as he landed on top of the reptile.

The three were now making their way to the other side as they climbed up a tree. The crocodiles were defeated and had been cheated out of their meal.

"We did it... We did it!" Kiara cheered before blowing a raspberry to the predators.

"Ha!" Kovu laughed with her.

"Nice try, boys!" Kopa laughed at the crocodiles.

* * *

The cubs then moved on the other side into safety as they recounted their adventure that they had just been thrown with.

"Whoa, man, did you see the size of those teeth?!" Kiara laughed. "They were going 'RAAAAWR'! He was just totally eatin' you up right there and Kopa jumped on his head and he bopped 'em so good!"

"Well, I wasn't going to let him eat any cubs today, even if one of them is an Outsider." Kopa added in.

Kovu had a small smile to that. Little did they know, Zira was secretly watching and looked rather menacing about the cubs interacting with each other.

"We made such a great team." Kopa smiled.

"Yeah, and you," Kiara said before turning to the new cub. "You were really brave..."

"Yeah, you were pretty brave too," Kovu smiled back. "My name's Kovu."

Kiara giggled before leaning against him slightly. "I'm Kiara~"

"And I'm her big brother, Kopa." Kopa smiled.

Kiara then smirked as she crouched down playfully and nudged Kovu with her paw. "Tag, you're it!"

Kovu just looked at her silently.

"Tag, you're it!" Kiara tried again. "You're it!"

Kovu didn't even react, he just stared at her like he had idea what she was trying to do.

"Um, hello, you run, we tag, get it?" Kopa asked as if it was an obvious question.

"What's the matter?" Kiara added in. "Don't you know how to play?"

Kovu honestly shook his head, then smirked as he decided to play with them and crouched down playfully and growled, but looked nervous as he looked up and saw Simba had come with Nala and the other lionesses. Atticus, Mo, Cherry, Forte, and the kids in the lion forms were there as well.

"Zira." Simba snarled at the dark lioness on the other side.

"Simba!" Zira growled back. "Nala..."

"Zira." Nala scowled.

"Timon, Pumbaa, Mabu, Mishka, Monty, ecetra..." Timon concluded as he rode on the warthog's back. "Great... Now that we all know each other... **GET OUTTA OUR PRIDELANDS!** "

"Yeah!" The meerkat kids added in.

"Your Pridelands?" Zira mocked the meerkat.

Timon ducked down and held his niece and nephews close.

"These lands belong to Scar." Zira growled.

"No, they're not, these lands belong to Simba!" Estelle glared.

"And I banished you from the Pridelands!" Simba added with a sneer to the rogue lioness. "Now, take your young cub and get out!"

This surprised both Kovu and Kiara.

"Oh... haven't you met my son, Kovu?" Zira introduced her youngest cub. "He was hand-chosen by Scar to follow in his pawprints... and become King!"

Timon scoffed at Kovu who looked rather frightened of Simba. "That's not a king, that's just a fuzzy maraca!"

"Yeah!" Mabu added.

"Good one, Uncle Timon." Monty snickered.

"Kovu was the last born before you exiled us to the Outlands," Zira glared to Simba. "Where we have little food, less water..."

"You know the penalty for returning to the Pridelands!" Simba snarled.

"But the child does not!" Zira replied. "However... If you need your pound of flesh... Here." Zira replied before nudging Kovu over to Simba.

"Is she serious?" Estelle asked.

Simba looked very disgusted with Zira's offer to sacrifice her own cub to him just for paying the price. "Take him and get out," he firmly demanded to the lioness. "We're finished here."

"Oh, no, Simba," Zira replied. "We have barely begun."

Kopa simply growled at her, not afraid of the evil lioness. Zira and Simba picked up their cubs and walked their separate ways, glaring to each other.

"Bye..." Kiara whispered.

"Bye..." Kovu whispered back.

Kopa frowned, sad that their fun had to be cut short after getting away from those crocodiles.

"Dad, I..." he spoke up softly.

"Let's go home." Simba cut him off right there, sounding reminiscent of his father when he and Nala encountered the hyenas when they were cubs.

Kopa frowned again.

Akito saw what happened between the two and decided to try and apologize as he went over to the older lion cub. "Kopa, I was only trying to-"

Kopa glared to him. "You told him, didn't you?"

"I only tried to help." Akito frowned.

"Well next time, try not to get us in trouble, alright?" Kopa glared before walking off and following his parents.

Akito felt deeply hurt as Estelle, Felicity, Simon, and Vincent were at his sides. "Guys, I'm confused, didn't I do the right thing?"

"I believe you did," Felicity said. "Even if Kopa and Kiara are in trouble, it is best it's from their parents and not becoming a meal for those crocodiles."

"That's right." Vincent said.

"I guess..." Akito sighed as they were now going back to Pride Rock.

The walk back to Pride Rock was a very long walk.


	7. Chapter 7

Nala had stayed behind and she looked to her mate in concern. "Simba?"

Simba cleared his throat as he continued to carry Kiara. Nala understood that Simba wanted to be alone with their daughter, so she went off for now just as Kion was coming back after playing with Bunga and Pumbaa came to take the honey badger home with him. Kopa began to try to sneak away from his father.

"I'll have a chat with you later, Kopa." Simba said to his oldest as he continued to go with Kiara.

"Great.." Kopa muttered as he stared at the ground.

Akito was still upset that Kopa was angry with him.

* * *

Felicity was in her human form and was shooting arrows at bulls-eyes inside their campsite. Akito walked over as Felicity shot another arrow, hitting the target.

"Good..." Cherry quietly droned about her daughter's performance.

Akito continued to walk until he stopped in the middle of the tall grass, sitting on the ground, feeling terrible.

"Akito?" Mo looked over to her middle child. "Are you okay?"

Akito sighed. "Not really, Mom..."

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Mo asked.

Akito looked back. "I kinda told Uncle Simba that Kopa and Kiara were in trouble..." he explained. "They could've been seriously hurt by those crocodiles... Kopa's mad at me though."

"Akito, you did the right thing going to Simba, if it wasn't for you, they might have gotten seriously hurt or worse." Mo soothed her youngest and strongest son.

"I guess..." Akito sighed. "But he's mad at me."

"Maybe you just need to give him sometime to cool down." Mo said.

"I guess..." Akito pouted.

Mo gave him a hug. "I'm sorry Kopa's mad at you, but remember, you did the right thing about telling Simba, they could've gotten in worse trouble than what he can give them now if you hadn't."

"Yeah, I guess I did do the right thing." Akito frowned.

"Get some rest..." Mo soothed. "I'm sure everything will be fine in the morning."

"I'll try." Akito frowned.

"I'm sorry, honey..." Mo gently patted him on the head.

Akito sighed and flopped against his back as he felt defeat.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile with Kopa later that night...**_

Simba was talking with Kiara, he showed that he wasn't mad and they had eventually made up. And where after speaking with her he decided to have a talk with his oldest son. Kiara got settled just as Kion was coming back after playing with Bunga.

Simba came over to his oldest cub. "Kopa?"

Kopa sighed. "Look, Dad, I know you're mad, but I was just trying to save Kiara and Kovu!"

"Yes, but remember what we agreed on for the Kiara's and Kion's safety?" Simba asked sternly.

"I know, Dad, but..." Kopa tried to explain.

"And you disobeyed me and what's worse, you almost caused two cubs their lives." Simba said.

"Dad, I'm sorry..." Kopa sighed shakily then. "I was just trying to be brave like you and Grandpa Mufasa."

"Your grandfather once told me that he was only brave when he has to be, just like me, you see, being brave doesn't mean you go looking for trouble." Simba said.

Kopa sighed. "I'm really sorry, Dad..."

"You should know that even kings can get scared." Simba told him.

"Yeah, I guess..." Kopa looked back up. "Were you scared?"

"Yes," Simba nodded. "I was afraid I'd lose you guys... It was hard enough when those humans took you away from us to that city."

"I guess even kings can get scared." Kopa said.

Simba simply nodded.

"But you know what?" Kopa whispered.

"What?" Simba asked.

"I bet those crocodiles would've even scareder if you were there." Kopa smirked.

Simba laughed, he said something very similar about Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. "That's 'cuz no one messes with your dad... Come here!" he then wrapped his arm around his oldest son and gave him a noogie on his brown tuft.

"No! No! Hey, stop!" Kopa laughed before getting out of his grip before starting to have fun with him.

Simba laughed as he and Kopa made up and were having fun again. Nala smiled at the sight.

"Hey, Dad?" Kopa asked.

"Hmm?" Simba said, having his attention.

"We're pals, right?" Kopa asked.

"Right." Simba smiled.

"And we'll always be together, right?" Kopa asked.

Simba sighed, remembering what his father had told him and told his son about the Great Kings of the Past.

* * *

"Kopa and Kiara are gonna be King and Queen of the Pridelands, what does that make me?" Kion muttered to himself.

"Hey, Kion, you okay?" Estelle asked.

Kion looked over. "I guess... It's just... If Kiara and Kopa are gonna rule Pride Rock, what'll that make me?"

"A monkey's brother?" Estelle guessed, trying to be funny.

Kion glanced at her. "Very funny."

"Thanks, anyways, trust me, you're going to be something very important when you grow up." Estelle smiled.

"I guess so..." Kion shrugged.

Estelle pouted. "Um, I heard you saw a cheetah..."

"Yeah, she looked lost, but I guess she went home now..." Kion shrugged. "It's not important, I might not see her again, I might, I don't know..."

"Well, who knows, she might be a new friend that you'll make." Estelle smiled.

"I guess..." Kion shrugged. "So, what are you again? Some hairless monkey?"

Estelle narrowed her eyes. "I'm a human."

"Ohh, wait, aren't humans dangerous?" Kion asked.

"No," Estelle said. "Well... Some are, but I'm not... My parents knew your dad when he was a cub."

"Really?" Kion asked.

"Yeah," Estelle continued with a smile. "So did my aunt and uncle."

"So then, you all are good humans." Kion smiled.

"Yeah," Estelle smiled back. "We're all your friends here, Kion."

"I'm happy to know that." Kion smiled.

Estelle beamed. "See?"

"I guess..." Kion replied, then looked to see the sun was setting. "Ooh, time for bed."

Kion then yawned and stretched.

"Good night, Kion." Estelle waved.

Kion smiled, then went into the cave den. "Night."

Estelle soon changed into her lion form.

* * *

Simon had a sharp rock and was striking against a rock with it.

"Time for sleeping, Simon..." Cherry told her youngest child.

Cherry picked up her son and held him over her shoulder as she went to take him to bed.

Felicity shot one last arrow, then set her bow down as it was time to go to sleep. Akito was doing push-ups, still thinking that Kopa was angry at him for what he did.

"I wonder if Rafiki could teach me how to paint like him..." Vincent wondered out loud.

"Maybe he will if you ask him." Atticus said.

"I will..." Vincent said.

"You've really grown fond of painting lately, huh?" Mo asked.

"Yeah," Vincent grinned. "I think I'll become an artist when I grow up."

"I think you will too." Mo smiled.

Vincent smiled back, then yawned as he felt rather sleepy right about now.

"Come on, kids, time for bed." Mo said.

"Okay, Mom..." the kids mumbled.

"Ah, kids..." Mo sighed. "They never wanna go to bed, but when you're my age, that's the first thing you wanna do."

"Don't I know it?" Atticus said.

"Just wait til you're _my_ age..." Cherry mumbled. "You'll never sleep again."

"Like that is ever going to happen." Mo said.

Cherry lowly hummed in response to that.

"What did you say?" Mo asked, not hearing what Cherry said.

"Nothing important..." Cherry rolled her eyes.

"Tut tut..." Forte scolded since she had cursed in French.

Cherry glanced at him.

"Anyways, we better get some sleep." Atticus said.

"Now, Dad?" Akito asked.

"Yes, Akito, now." Atticus replied.

"Alright." Akito said before getting up and heading to bed.

"Good night, everyone." Mo said.

The others muttered out their evening greetings as they got comfortable and went to get some sleep. The rest of the stay in the Pridelands was going to be a really big adventure. It was a more peaceful night now, even if Kopa was a little steamed with Akito about telling Simba what had happened. But luckily, he would cool down and would apologize to Akito for his behavior. Everybody then went straight to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

The next few days were quite an experience, especially with Kion and Bunga finally able to catch and meet the cheetah cub while she was resting after running for while. Simba decided soon enough to tell Kiara about everything the light touches being their kingdom like he did with Kopa. However, it was hard when Kion and Bunga were playing around one time and kind of making nuisances of themselves.

"Kion!" Kopa glared.

Kiara looked very annoyed with her younger brother.

"Oops, sorry, Dad, sorry, Kopa, we were playing 'Baobob Ball'." Kion told them.

"And Kion couldn't handle the pass." Bunga laughed, taking the fruit.

"Cubs..." Kopa rolled his eyes.

"What?" Kion glared at the honey badger. "A giraffe couldn't handle the pass! You kicked it over my head!"

"Kion..." Simba said firmly.

"And you couldn't handle it." Bunga said, jumping over his lion cub friend.

"Bunga..." Kopa said firmly.

"Yeah?" Kion glared. "Try to handle this!"

The two then began to playfully fight over the fruit causing Kiara to roll her eyes.

" **BOYS!** " Kopa yelled.

"Whoa!" Bunga fell off slightly as Kion then stopped.

"Kion, I need to talk to your sister, she'll be tracking gazelles with her friends today." Simba told his youngest cub.

Kiara chuckled. "Because I'm training to be-"

"Queen of the Pridelands," Kion scoffed. "Yeah, yeah, I know all about that, Kiara."

"At least Kopa and I have our lives figured out, what are you going to be, little brother?" Kiara asked.

"Happy?" Kion smirked.

Kiara and Kopa glared to him in response.

"All right, you guys, that's enough," Simba replied. "Kion, why don't you and Bunga go play somewhere else?"

"Yeah." Akito said after coming out from the cave.

Estelle, Felicity, and Vincent came out after him.

"I know the perfect place!" Bunga said, then looked to the human kids. "You guys wanna come?"

"Yeah!" The Fudo siblings smiled.

"That sounds like a good idea." Kopa said, seeing how agitated his sister seemed and how slightly impatient his father seemed.

"Then let's go!" Estelle cheered.

"You'll never get the baobab fruit!" Bunga teased his lion friend in a singsong tone as he ran with it.

"Oh, we'll see about that." Akito smirked playfully.

"Ha!" Kion laughed at his bestest friend. "You got nowhere to go, Bunga!"

"Says you!" Bunga laughed before he leaped off of Pride Rock with the fruit into a tree. "Zuka Zama!" He then ended up on the ground safely and softly, then smirked to his other friends that were still high up. "Catch me if you can, guys!"

"Oh, you can count on that!" Estelle told him.

"Bring it on, Monkey Biped!" Bunga smirked as he caught the fruit and ran off with it.

"Game on, Bunga!" Kion called before running after the honey badger. "Later, Dad. Have fun tracking those gazelles, Kiara. I gotta get Bunga!"

Kiara sighed in mild annoyance. "I can't believe we're related."

"Kion will mature in the future," Kopa assured her with a smile, but then frowned. "I hope."

* * *

Bunga laughed as he ran with the fruit as he and the others were passing the giraffes.

"Pass it to me!" Estelle called out.

"Head's up!" Bunga called back to her as he passed the fruit as they came up right next to the giraffes.

"Got it! Heads up, Bro!" Estelle called out before passing the fruit to Akito.

Akito laughed as he jumped up and caught the fruit. "Fudo has the ball!"

"Not for long!" Felicity laughed as she jumped over to him instantly and snagged the fruit from him.

"Hey!" Akito playfully pouted.

Felicity laughed before tossing the fruit again. The giraffe caught it on his head before shaking it and letting the fruit fall down into Vincent's hold.

"Thank you." Vincent smiled.

The giraffe smiled back. Bunga then caught the fruit as they kept running, passing peaceful birds of the jungle.

One woke up with a gasp and panicked instantly at the incoming stampede. "Everyone, scatter!" he called out to his fellow birds.

All his fellow birds and him then began to scatter to the sky, avoiding the lion cubs and the honey badger. They then came up to a large tree as the birds went off to another spot for peace and quiet. Bunga tossed the fruit against the tree and caught it again. Rafiki emerged from the tree with a laugh.

"We're gonna get ya, Bunga!" Akito called out.

"You can try!" Bunga laughed as they hopped over the hippos in the water then.

One hippo popped his head out with a small smile. "Bunga, Kion, everyone else..."

"Nothing will stop us from coming after you!" Akito called out to Bunga.

Bunga laughed as he kept running with them. However, the lion cubs stopped nervously as they came across a rather angry alligator. But then Akito, who had remembered his super-strength and invulnerability, decided to growl right back at him. The alligator blinked and slid down slightly.

* * *

Akito smirked and he and the others continued on after the honey badger. Bunga crashed against a cobra, getting the fruit stuck in his mouth. He then took the fruit out and then kept running from the lion cubs as they traveled all around the jungle. Someone incredibly fast, the cheetah, was zipping around then and ended up taking Bunga for a ride. Bunga laughed as he waved to the lion cubs, riding on the cheetah's back. The cheetah glared up at him, then bucked him off of her back.

Akito, being the fastest and strongest out of them all, ran ahead. Bunga rolled backwards down the hill and slid against his back.

Kion laughed and pinned down the honey badger. "Gotcha now, Bunga!"

* * *

The fruit then rolled over, not too far away from them. Before either of them could get it, Akito arrived a second later and grabbed the fruit.

"The winner!" Akito cheered for himself. "Yeah, touchdown!" he then threw down the fruit like a football, then accidentally dropped it off the ledge into a rather dead and deserted area. "Whoops..."

"Aw," Kion groaned to him. "You dropped it into the Outlands! Game Over."

"Says who?" Bunga spoke up, looking determined. "I'm not afraid of the Outlands."

"Have you lost your mind?!" Vincent asked.

"Come on, are ya guys scared?" Bunga smirked.

"Well, I'm not," Kion glared. "It's just... My dad says we shouldn't-"

"Oh, please!" Bunga scoffed. "Simba's a big old scaredy cat when it comes to the Outlands! You know what my uncles always say!" he said before diving after the fruit.

"Hakana Matata." Vincent sighed.

Bunga kept falling until suddenly he was caught by a branch. "Whoa!"

"Bunga, you okay?" Felicity asked. "You look a little stuck."

"Are you kidding? It's just a tree branch!" Bunga shrugged as he tried to get himself free, then kicked himself forward and continued his fall. "Zuka Zama!"

"He doesn't let anything stop him." Vincent said.

"I blame Timon for that one." Estelle commented.


	9. Chapter 9

As Bunga was looking for the fruit, there was a group of four hyenas together and one appeared to be gnawing on a bone. And where their leader was being selfish as he was gnawing it all for himself taking all the meat off it. The other hyenas groaned and looked very hungry and on the brink of starvation.

"Oh, 'fraid there's no meat left for you boys." the leader mocked as he continued to gnaw on the bone. He then tossed the bone away, causing some of the hyenas to go after it.

The hyneas whined though since there was no meat left on the bone for them, however, one of them spotted the fruit. "Janja, Janja, a baobab fruit!"

"Let's eat it!" a chubby hyena grinned before pouting hungrily. "I'm starvelated..."

"What do you take me for, a vegetarian?" the lead hyena scoffed. "I want something nice and meaty for lunch!" He then suddenly sighted a butterfly and decided that was better than starving himself to death. "Something..." he then stared at the flying insect and jumped after it, trying to chomp at it, but had trouble getting it as it flew behind his ear. "Huh? Where'd it go?"

The hyenas laughed at their leader.

"What, what, what?" Janja demanded. "What's so funny?!"

The hyenas continued to laugh at their leader, not even noticing Bunga in the Outlands to get the fruit back.

Janja got angry and impatient, but he saw the honey badger and jumped down quietly to them. "Stuff it, fur brains! Look... A honey badger," he said before licking his lips. "Now that's my idea of a delightful lunch! Chungu! Cheezi! Bring him to me!"

The two idiot hyenas nodded to their leader before going to get the honey badger for him. Janja grinned darkly as they went to do as told, hopefully he would get to eat Bunga, still feeling selfishly hungry.

* * *

"He's been down there an awfully long time..." Vincent said.

Simon then rolled up into a ball and rolled down the Outlands rock wall and punched the ground as he landed on his two feet and looked aggressive.

"Here we are." Bunga smiled, tossing the fruit up and down.

Simon came to Bunga.

"Huh?" Bunga looked at him. "What're you doing-"

Simon put his finger to his mouth, narrowing his eyes firmly as he shushed the honey badger.

"Uh-oh." Estelle frowned, seeing two hyenas behind Bunga.

"Heyvi kabisa!" Kion gasped.

"Bunga! Simon! Watch out!" Akito called out.

"Relax, Akito!" Bunga replied as he juggled the fruit. "Hakuna-"

Cheezi snarled in the honey badger's face.

"Matata...?" Bunga wearily finished what he started before catching the fruit in his paws.

Simon snarled back at the hyena and held his sharp rock in defense.

"Get out of there, guys!" Vincent called down.

"Okay, hyena," Bunga challenged. "You wanna see what this honey badger's made of? I'll show you what I'm made of!" Suddenly, he was carried in the other hyena's mouth, making them both laugh.

Simon hissed at the hyenas, having bloody murder in his eyes. But for some reason, he wasn't attacking either hyena. The hyenas snarled at him. Simon growled and lunged for the hyenas, starting to fight them.

"Hyenas, leave them alone!" Kion glared. "Pick on somebody your own size!"

"Yeah!" Akito glared.

"Kion!" Cheezi called mockingly. "You want the honey badger? Come and get him!"

"Let them both go!" Kion told him. "You don't want any trouble with my dad!"

"Ooh, like how you'd get into trouble if you came into the Outlands?" Cheezi mocked with a laugh.

"Uh, guys?" Bunga called up as he and Simon were trapped by the laughing hyenas.

"They're too afraid to come down here!" Chungu laughed.

"Yeah, fraidy cat!" Cheezi added in.

Akito really wanted to teach the two hyenas a lesson for calling Kion a fraidy cat.

"All right, yeah," Cheezi said after chanting and laughing. "Fun's over. Janja needs his lunch."

"Lunch?" Bunga asked nervously.

"Simon!" Felicity gasped for her little brother's life.

"No!" Kion narrowed his golden eyes. "Let... Them... **GOOOOO!** " he snarled before letting out the loudest roar that he had ever given, especially for his size and age.

Everyone was surprised by this, especially with what was going on in the sky. The hyenas were so shocked that they dropped Bunga and Simon flat on the ground. Kion continued his roar and he glared down to the bullying predators and there appeared to be a glow against his body that showed a new paw print mark that sealed him.

Bunga shoved the fruit in Chungu's mouth and climbed up after jumping on Cheezi's head. "See ya, hyenas, wouldn't wanna be ya!"

* * *

"That was so cool!" Estelle smiled.

"Heyvi kabisa!" Kion gasped. "What was that?"

"Zuka Zama!" Bunga came back up to the others with Simon. "Kion, how'd you roar like that?"

"I dunno, Bunga," Kion honestly shook his head. "Wish I did though."

"Well, however you did it, it was un-bunga-lievable!" Bunga replied as they decided to get back home.

"Yeah, it was unbelievable!" Estelle smiled.


	10. Chapter 10

Back at Pride Rock, Rafiki came and gathered Simba and Nala after Kion's roar was the talk of the Pridelands.

"That was Kion's roar?" Nala asked.

"Yes, Nala, yes!" Rafiki laughed. "He is ready! It is time!"

"Eh, no, Rafiki," Simba disagreed after a forced chuckle. "He can't possibly be ready. He's still a cub."

"You heard him, Simba." Rafiki said.

"What's going on?" Cherry came with Forte, Atticus, and Mo.

"Rafiki thinks it's time for Kion." Nala replied.

"Time for what?" Mo asked.

"Did you all hear the Roar?" Rafiki prompted before answering their questions.

"Yeah, who was that?" Forte asked. "It sounded as powerful as Mufasa's roar, but that seems impossible."

"That Roar is very important in lion culture." Rafiki smiled.

"Wait, do you mean that roar was that special roar you told us about?" Atticus asked.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, it is." Rafiki nodded.

"It's just... It's a big responsibility. I need more time to prepare him." Simba sounded uneasy about Kion's destiny.

"I think you've just run out of time, Simba," Nala replied. "You need to tell him."

"She's right, Simba." Atticus said.

"But, guys..." Simba still wasn't so sure.

"Listen to Rafiki, Simba..." Cherry advised.

"Kion is ready," Rafiki repeated with emphasis. "It is time."

"Time for what?" Kion asked as he, Bunga, and the others came back to Pride Rock. "Dad? Rafiki? Aunt Cherry, Aunt Mo, Uncle Atticus, Uncle Forte, what's going on?"

Mo began to urge Simba to tell Kion that it was time. Rafiki even nudged the adult male lion.

Simba glanced at them, but then looked back to his youngest cub. "Son, we need to talk..."

Kion backed up and shook his head. "Oh, no Dad, we already had that talk," he replied, misunderstanding the situation. "'Can you feel the love tonight'...? I know all about that mushy stuff!"

"Um, that's not what your father wants to talk to you about, Kion." Atticus said.

"Erm... Yeah..." Simba said after a small laugh at his son's overreaction.

"No, no, most definitely not that,"Rafiki added in. "We have heard your Roar! Yes, yes!"

"Yeah, it was, it was, uh, different today." Kion replied.

"Yeah, it was really loud." Akito smiled.

"I almost felt an earthquake." Felicity commented.

"I haven't heard a strong roar from a lion, usually tigers have stronger roars than lions do." Vincent added in.

"Different?" Rafiki questioned. "Different, you say?" he then chuckled. "It is more than different. It is the Roar of the Elders! When you use it, the Great Lions of the Pridelands' past roar with you."

"Roar of the Elders?" Estelle asked.

"What?" Kion added, also very confused, despite being born a lion.

"Are you saying that is what happened to his roar?" Felicity asked.

"Yeah, lions in the sky!" Bunga spoke up. "I saw that!"

"The Roar of the Elders is a great gift, Kion," Simba educated. "It will make you the fiercest animal in the Pridelands. But..."

"But what?" the lion cubs asked.

Simba looked to the mandrill for him to tell them, though moslty Kion since this concerned him the most.

"No, no, Simba," Rafiki informed the current lion king. "It is you who must tell Kion about the Lion Guard."

"The Lion Guard?" The lion cubs said, confused.

"What's that?" Kion added.

"This way, Kion." Simba led the way down from Pride Rock to show his son something important.

"Uh, okay..." Kion shrugged and followed his father.

"Can we come too?" Akito asked Simba.

"They might as well." Atticus said.

"Very well." Simba agreed.

"Oh, come on, Rafiki," Bunga pestered the wise and elder baboon. "You already know what it is, don'tcha? Come on, tell me..."

"You'll have to find out what it is just like the rest of us." Akito said.

"Yeah." The Pokemon said, coming from underneath Pride Rock.

* * *

The kids gestured for their Pokemon to come with them so they could learn all about the Lion Guard. Rafiki led them to vines that were covering one cave and he opened it up to allow the children and their Pokemon to come inside and explore the mystery of the jungle.

"Ooh." The Pokemon said.

"Huh?" Kion asked.

"It's a bunch of vines?" Bunga sounded confused and disappointed.

"I think there's something behind those vines." Akito said.

"Correct." Rafiki nodded to him as he pulled back the vines and allowed them to enter the hidden cave from Pride Rock.

"Wow, how'd you know, Akito?" Kion asked.

"I just had a feeling that there was something behind them." Akito said, honestly.

"Akito has always been wise beyond his years." Felicity commented as they walked into the cave and saw various marks on the walls that appeared to show other lions.

* * *

"How did I not know this was here?" Kion asked himself. "Dad, what is this place?"

"This is Lion Guard Lair," Simba informed as he led them after Rafiki allowed them to go inside. "It's the secret meeting place for the members of the Lion Guard."

"It sure seems like this place hasn't been used in years." Teddy said.

"Yeah, maybe they should think about fixin' the place up," Bunga agreed before coughing. "Or at least, do some dusting."

"Mind if I do the honors, Rafiki?" Akito asked.

"Perhaps it would be best." Rafiki smiled to him.

"Then you all better take cover." Akito said before taking a deep breath.

The others backed away.

"Why?" Bunga asked as he stayed where he was, not seeing the big deal.

Larvitar soon grabbed and pulled him back and away from Akito. After taking a big deep breath, Akito released all of his super breath, blowing all of the dust away and out of the lair.

"Whoa!" Bunga was blown away, not literally, but was astonished by Akito's abilities. "That's more like it! Can you show that trick to my Uncle Timon and Uncle Pumbaa?"

"I don't think that your uncles could be able to gain the power of super breath." Larvitar said.

Rafiki chuckled to that while Bunga pouted.

"Dad, enough with all the secrecy stuff!" Kion said, very eager to hear about this Lion Guard stuff. "You gotta tell me. What is the Lion Guard?"

Simba decided to finally answer to settle them for now. "The Lion Guard is the team that protects the Pride Lands and defends the Circle of Life. According to tradition, the Lion Guard is made of the Pride Lands' fiercest, bravest, fastest, strongest, and keenest of sight."

"Cool." Akito smiled.

"So, what happened to them?" Vincent asked. "It looks like they haven't been in here in forever."

"I'm afraid it's a story without a happy ending." Simba replied gravely.

"Uh-Oh, I have a feeling that Scar is included in this." Akito said.

"Indeed he is." Simba stated.

"Please, go on." Estelle replied.

"I will," Simba nodded as he began to tell the story. "Kion, when your grandfather Mufasa was about your age, his younger brother, Scar, was leader of the Lion Guard. Scar also had the gift of the Roar. The Roar made Scar feel powerful. But that power went to Scar's head. He began to think that he should be king, instead of his older brother Mufasa. So Scar ordered the Lion Guard to help him take down Mufasa. When the Guard refused, Scar was furious. And then, Scar used the Roar to destroy the Lion Guard. What Scar didn't realize was that by using the Roar for evil, he would lose the power of the Roar completely."

"Whoa." The Pokemon said, shocked.

"Heyvi kabisa..." Kion muttered.

"Yeah..." Bunga agreed.

"Oh, dear..." Estelle frowned.

"The Roar is a very powerful gift," Rafiki advised. "It can be used for great good, but it can also lead to terrible evil."

"Oh, my..." Vincent frowned.

"Well, I'd never be like Scar!" Kion promised. "Ever!"

"I'm glad to hear that, son," Simba replied. "Because starting today, you are the leader of the new Lion Guard."

"Awesome!" Vulpix smiled.

"I'm the what?" Kion asked.

"You heard Simba," Rafiki replied. "Haha! The leader of the new Lion Guard! It is you! Yes! It. Is. You!"

"Dad?" Kion asked for confirmation due to how eccentric the baboon could be.

"It's true, Kion." Simba confirmed.

"That is so awesome!" Larvitar cheered.

"Amazing!" Kion happily agreed.

"It is," Simba smiled to him. "And now, as leader of the Guard, I need you to assemble the Pridelands' bravest, fastest, strongest, and keenest of sight."

"Okay, Dad, don't worry, I'm gonna make you proud!" Kion promised as he was now determined to fulfill his destiny.

"He's going to do a great job." Atticus smiled.

"I'm sure he will." Simba smiled back.

They then saw that Bunga, the rest of the cubs, and the Pokemon were still there.

"Yes, you all?" Simba asked them of why they were still there.

"This is un-bunga-lievable!" Bunga cheered.

"Yeah!" The cubs and Pokemon cheered.

Simba rolled his eyes with a smile as the cubs, Pokemon, and honey badger moved out after Kion.

"Kion is ready, I just know it." Mo smiled.

"You see, Simba?" Rafiki added in. "And now Kion will choose the best lions in the Pride for the Guard."

"I hope so, guys," Simba replied. "I'm still not sure if he's ready."

"Yes, he is." Atticus said.

"I can only hope you're right." Simba said.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile with Kion...**_

"Wow! Me! Leader of the Lion Guard..." Kion said to himself as he wandered along the grasslands. "Protectors of the Pridelands! It's kinda scary..."

"Hey, Kion!" Bunga's voice called out.

"Huh?" Kion turned his head before he was suddenly splashed by his best friend. "Ugh, Bunga!"

"Ready to start assembling the Lion Guard?" Bunga asked, very excited about this. "Huh? Now? Yeah? Huh?"

"Yes," Kion coughed. "After you stop splashing me."

"Splashing?" Bunga asked, then stopped once he saw what he was doing. "Oh... Sorry, Kion."

"Hakuna Matata, Bunga." Kion smiled.

Bunga chuckled to that.

"Now, come on," Kion suggested. "Time to assemble the Lion Guard!"

Unknown to them, a vulture had overheard Kion, the vulture's name was Mzingo.

"Lion Guard? Hmm..." he said to himself.

Kion then walked with Bunga, the other cubs, and the Pokemon about assembling his own Lion Guard crew.

"So, who are you going to choose to join the Lion Guard?" Larvitar asked Kion.

"Dad said the Lion Guard needs the Pridelands' bravest, strongest, fastest, and keenest of sight," Kion said as he walked with them. "So I think I'll go ask the bravest animal in the Pridelands first."

"Kion, wait!" Bunga stopped his best friend. "Before you go asking whoever you think is the bravest, think about this... I might not be the biggest honey badger. But I know what's in my heart. And I'm not afraid of anything, or anyone!"

"I know, Bunga, that's why-" Kion tried to explain.

"I'll help the Lion Guard fight hyenas," Bunga continued. "Or jackals! Or crocodiles! Or vultures!"

"Vultures?" Mzingo overheard that.

"Or great big rock slides or wild fires or floods!" Bunga went on and on. "I will stand with the Lion Guard! I'll never give up! I'll, I'll-"

"Will you stop talk long enough for him to finish his sentence?" Estelle asked.

"Oh... Sorry..." Bunga shut up then.

"Thank you," Kion replied. "Anyway, thanks Bunga, but I was already going to ask you to join the Lion Guard."

"Say what?" Bunga asked, slightly surprised by that offer.

"Yep." Akito nodded, already knowing that the honey badger would be the first to join the Lion Guard.

"Come on, Bunga!" Kion encouraged his best friend. "You're the bravest animal I know! I want you to be the first to join the new Lion Guard."

"Zuka Zama!" Bunga approved.

* * *

"Zuka Zama indeed, I wonder if Janja knows about the Lion Guard." Mzingo said before flying off.

"You couldn't have made a better choice," Bunga smiled to Kion. "We're gonna make a great team. I can't wait to tell Uncle Timon and Uncle Pumbaa."

"I'm sure they're going to be surprised." Akito said.

There was then a panicked scream in the distance.

"Guys, did you hear that?" Bunga asked.

Kion listened closely. "It sounds like Kiara's friend, Zuri."

"Yeah, and she sounds like she needs help." Akito said.

"Our help!" Bunga added, totally excited for sure now. "It's our first adventure! Lion Guard to the rescue!"

"Really?" Akito asked.

"Uh, yeah?" Bunga glanced at him.

"Is that really how you guys going to shout out when you go to a rescue?" Akito asked.

"Are you gonna help or just stand there?" Bunga scoffed before running off on his own.

"Lion Guard to the rescue?" Kion repeated to himself, then ran to catch up with his very quick friend. "Hey, Bunga, wait up!"

Akito rolled his eyes, already knowing that this wouldn't end well, but still had to see what would happen.

"Come on, we better help." Estelle suggested.

"Right." Akito agreed.


	11. Chapter 11

Kiara was with Tiifu while Zuri was trapped.

"Hold still, Zuri," Tiifu soothed. "Timon and Pumbaa said they know how to help."

"Where am I gonna go, Tiifu?" Zuri whined. "I'm stuck!"

"You wouldn't be stuck if you didn't keep stopping to sharpen your claws on every other tree." Kiara sighed.

"But Kiara, if I don't keep them sharp, they don't stay shiny!" Zuri whined.

"And I thought Ryan had trouble when I taught him how to do this." Kopa mumbled.

"Who's Ryan, is he a friend of yours?" Tiifu asked after overhearing his mumble.

"You ever hear the story of how I was taken away by humans and I ended up in a place called 'New York City'?" Kopa answered her question with another one.

"I think so, weren't you taken away by humans?" Tiifu asked.

"I just said that..." Kopa replied.

"Oh, yeah..." Tiifu said.

"I made a new lion friend named Ryan," Kopa then explained. "I decided to teach him how to sharp his claws against a tree since he didn't know how."

"What lion doesn't know how to do that?" Zuri asked with a slight scoff.

"Well, he wasn't from the wild like we are, he was in a zoo all his life." Kopa explained.

"I still think zoos sound cruel based on how you talk about that adventure," Kiara said to her brother. "I mean, animals in cages? Sounds menacing!"

"Actually, it wasn't that bad, even if we were in cages, at night, all the animals would get out and start to play their own sports game." Kopa said.

"Really?" Kiara asked.

"I'll tell ya more later." Kopa said once he saw the meerkat and warthog were on their way over to them.

"Don't worry, ladies," Timon said as he sat on his best friend's back. "Me and Pumbaa have everything under control."

"Timon's right," Pumbaa added in. "We used to help Simba get his claws out of logs all the time."

"How are you going to get her claw out?" Kopa asked.

"Stand back." Timon said as he took a root and put it underneath Zuri's paw and tried to pop it underneath to free the young cub.

"And you're sure about this?" Kiara didn't seem so sure.

"Sure, I'm sure," Timon replied calmly and reassuringly. "If it weren't for us, your dad would still be stuck to a tree somewhere. Ready, Pumbaa?"

"Ready!" Pumbaa smiled as he bit onto the root.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Kopa whispered to Kiara.

"Because I do too." Kiara whispered back.

"Okay, on three," Timon said before counting. "One... Two-"

"Stand back!" Bunga's voice was suddenly heard.

"Oh, no, this can only make it worse." Kopa groaned.

"Bunga of the Lion Guard is here!" Bunga announced himself as he smiled and came in after swinging on a vine and ended up o nthe other side of them.

"What?" Kiara felt confused.

"Bunga!" Pumbaa called to his adoptive nephew.

Zuri gasped in pain. "Ow, my claw!" she yelped out before she suddenly lost her balance and fell straight into the ground by accident.

"You okay, Zuri?" Kopa asked.

"At least she isn't drowning this time." Kiara saw where her friend had landed.

* * *

Zuri squealed and screamed as she got caught in a log and popped out, now covered in insects. "Creepy crawly bugs!"

"Zuri, you hit the jackpot!" Timon praised.

"It's a smorgasbord!" Pumbaa added.

They both then jumped after the log as the bugs were crawling out.

"Well, at least she isn't injured." Kopa said.

"Hang on, Zuri, I'll save you!" Bunga looked ready for action.

"Okay, Bunga," Kiara held the honey badger back with her front paw before going to make sure her friend was okay. "You've done enough saving for one day."

"Yeah, why don't you go and play with Kion and the others?" Kopa suggested before doing the same.

"Where is Kion anyway?" Tiifu asked as she inspected Zuri with Kiara.

* * *

As if on cue, Kion ran right over.

"Bunga, I-" Kion was about to say, then saw the mess. "Whoa, what's going on?"

"I-I-I broke a claw!" Zuri cried. "It hurts!"

Kopa came over to Zuri's paw and started to lick gently before it healed up.

"Kopa, what are you doing?!" Zuri whined in disgust since Kopa had licked her paw, not knowing what it would do.

"Answer me this, do you feel anymore pain?" Kopa asked.

"Well... No, but..." Zuri replied.

"Then that's my answer, I just healed your paw." Kopa smiled.

"Uh... How did you do that?" Zuri asked, lowering her paw and standing on it now.

"I have the power to heal any wound," Kopa smiled. "I found out about this power one day before I was captured."

"Really...?" Kiara asked.

"Yes, I remember it well..." Kopa smiled in memory.

"Ooh, tell us." Zuri said, interested.

"Sometime, but for another time." Kopa promised.

"Aww..." Zuri pouted. "And you just got more exciting!"

Kopa chuckled.

"Oh, hey, Kiara," Kion came beside their sister. "How'd the gazelle tracking go?"

"We never got to the gazelles, Zuri got her claw stuck on a tree." Kiara groaned.

"And then she fell face first into a log full of bugs!" Pumbaa poked his head out with his mouth full of bugs in delight.

"Mmm!" Timon moaned hungrily and happily as he ate some of his own bugs.

"Bugs are so gross..." Zuri winced.

"Can't argue there." Kopa said.

"And so delicious!" Timon smiled. "Ooh, look!" he then rushed over to Tiifu, climbed on her back, and took out a bug that was behind her ear. "Another one!"

"Get it away!" Zuri flinched in disgust.

"Timon, girls don't like bugs." Kopa told the meerkat said.

"Oh, well, more for me." Timon shrugged, then gulped down the bug in his hands.

Bunga, the other cubs, and the Pokemon suddenly came.

"Hey, guys, you gotta hear this," Vulpix sounded super excited. "Simba just put Kion in charge of the Lion Guard!"

"Lion Guard?" Kiara asked, never hearing that term before. "What's a Lion Guard?"

"The Protectors of the Pridelands." Akito said.

"Dad just told us about it." Kion added. "They also defend the Circle of Life! And I'm its new leader."

"And I'm gonna be on the Lion Guard too!" Bunga smiled in excitement before doing a front flip. "It's un-bunga-lievable!"

"You and Bunga?" Kiara laughed at her younger brother. "Protecting the Pridelands? Does Dad know about this?"

"Dad told me to assemble the Pridelands' bests." Kion smirked.

"And I'm the best!" Bunga chirped. "Just ask me!"

"Kion, did Dad tell you that the Lion Guard had to be assembled with the Pridelands' animals best or the Pridelands' best as in lion best?" Kopa asked.

"He just said the Pridelands best, he didn't say anything about other lions, though Great-Uncle Scar had lions in his time before he lost the power." Kion replied.

"Well, I guess, but I think the Lion Guard needs lions..." Kopa shrugged. "I'd ask him if I were you."

"Well, if you ask me, it sounds like it might be dangerous." Pumbaa spoke up, worried about the honey badger's safety.

"It's worse than that, Pumbaa," Timon replied. "It sounds like work."

"It's better than that, it's both." Bunga smiled.

"Eek!" Timon flinched. "Work!"

"Gee, Bunga, I don't know..." Pumbaa sounded uneasy.

"Uncle Timon! Uncle Pumbaa! Please!" Bunga begged.

"Work? Danger? Definitely not," Timon declined. "Have you forgotten our problem-free philosophy? It means no worries, your cousins go by the same ever since your Aunt Tesma and me raised 'em like you!"

"I know it's not Hakuna Matata, Uncle Timon," Bunga replied. "It's... It's... Zuka Zama!"

"Zuka Zama?" Estelle said, confused.

"Don't ask." Timon told them.

"What's Zuka Zama?" Felicity asked anyway.

"What's Zuka Zama? What's Zuka Zama? I'll tell you all about Zuka Zama!" Bunga sounded excited now.

"Ya had to ask." Timon groaned.

"He's going to tell us all about it in song, right?" Teddy whispered to Timon.

"You got that right, Grizzly." Timon said.

The Teddiursa narrowed his eyes. "Teddy."

"Whatever." Timon shrugged.

 _'And the song begins now.'_ Akito thought to himself.

* * *

Bunga gestured for them to follow him. They began to follow after the crazy honey badger.

"Life's exciting, life is fun," Bunga started after a chorus of birds and monkeys sang his catchphrase. "A big adventure for everyone~"

"Zuka Zama Zom Zom Zom." The birds and monkeys sang.

"Life's a party and it's filled with thrills." Bunga continued as he got onto an elephant's back and did a flip while rolling like a ball off her trunk.

"Zuka Zama Zom Zom Zom." The birds sang.

"Don't worry about the scrapes and spills~" Bunga smiled to the others as he splashed into the waterhole next to the flamingos.

"Zuka Zama Zom Zom Zom." The flamingos sang as a hippo rose from the water with Bunga on its back before continuing to sing it over and over.

Bunga then chased after a butterfly and popped up from a log. "Dive in, dive in!"

"Zama Zama~" the monkeys sang.

"Go, go, go!" Bunga sang as he swung on a vine and flung himself from a branch.

"Zom, Zom, Zom~" the chorus sang.

Larvitar began to find this song rather enjoyable.

Bunga crossed a log over two high cliffs and jump-roped with two elephant trunks to show how brave and adventurous he was. "Flyin' through the trees like busy, busy bee going~"

"Zuka Zama Zom zom zom," Larvitar began to sing with the chorus. "Zuka Zama Zom zom zom, Zuka Zama Zom zom zom, Zuka Zama Zom zom zom~"

* * *

Bunga then kicked a hive like a soccer ball and made the buzzing bees swarm out and evade him. "Enjoy the chaos Ignore the strife~" the honey badger sang as he came out of a crocodile's mouth with ease, hung upside down with a group of bats, flew off with them, and did a swirl spin against an anaconda's long body. "When life throws you a crazy curve, Go Zuka Zama, Don't lose your nerve~"

Larvitar soon started dancing to the song.

Bunga rolled on a fruit as he came into a tree next to a monkey, jumped against other trees, and climbed each vine with ease like a jungle explorer and Larvitar followed after him. "Pop up, pop up..."

"Zuka Zuka!" Larvitar came after him.

"Dive in, Dive in!" Bunga smiled to him as he began to do flips all around the jungle.

"Zama Zama!" Larvitar smiled back.

And where even the most dangerous things didn't seem to bother Larvitar. The Rock Pokemon and the honey badger ended up into the water and spit it out. Fish surrounded them and did the same as they seemed to be getting into the song as well.

The two were then riding on a rhino, they used a couple of bones and beat them against a rib cage to play like a musical instrument, rode a log over a waterfall, and swing against a ledge, coming back to the others who were entertained, though Timon was mostly annoyed. Soon everyone, but Timon, began to sing along with Bunga and Larvitar. They even walked along after the honey badger.

* * *

"Zuka Zama Zom Zom!" Bunga finished after high-pawing with Kion.

"Meh, zuka palooka," Timon turned his back. "I still don't think Bunga should be signing up for some jungle patrol."

"Lion Guard!" Bunga aggressively corrected.

"Whatever you call it." Timon rolled his eyes with a shrug.

"Oh, come on, Timon, let Bunga join the Lion Guard." Larvitar begged.

"Come on, you guys, Bunga's the bravest animal that Kion knows." Vincent added, pleading to the meerkat and warthog.

"Yeah, I really need him for the Lion Guard!" Kion added.

"Bravest animal you know?" Timon asked.

"He's brave alright..." Kiara slightly rolled her eyes. "Brave bordering on stupid."

"Thanks, Kiara." Bunga smiled, ignoring the stupid part.

"Well, when you put it that way..." Pumbaa smiled to Kion.

"Congratulations, Bunga!" Timon smiled to the young honey badger, shaking his paw. "We always knew you had it in you!"

"Oh, brother," Kiara scoffed. "Kion's gonna wreck the Pridelands before I even get to be Queen."

"Lighten up, will ya?" Kopa glanced to his sister.

"We at least have to tell Dad about this." Kiara whispered to her older brother.

"All right, all right..." Kopa said. "Just don't stifle Kion, he's finally happy. The least you could do is show support for our little brother."

"Okay, okay, I'll try." Kiara sighed.

"Good Kiki." Kopa chuckled.

Kiara rolled her eyes at the nicknaming.

"Oh, Bunga, I'm so proud, I could-" Pumbaa beamed before he stopped and passed gas all of the sudden which made the grass behind him wither and die instantly. "Oops, sorry..."

"Uh, let's get you girls back to Pride Rock." Kopa quickly suggested to his sister and her friends.

"We're outta here!" Zuri agreed.

"Um, Kion, I think we should keep going so you can find next member for the Lion Guard." Akito suggested.

"Great idea, come this way." Kion agreed before going off.

"Wait, guys!" Bunga called out before following after the group. "The Lion Guard needs to stick together!"

"Was it something I said?" Pumbaa frowned.

"I don't think that it would be wise for us to tell him." Misdreavus whispered to the others.

"Mm-mm..." the other Pokemon shook their heads as they went after Kion, Bunga, and their lion cub trainers.


	12. Chapter 12

"So, where are we going?" AKito asked Kion.

"We need to find Ono." Kion said.

"Oh, no?" Felicity asked. "What's the problem?"

"No, no, Ono," Kion corrected her. "He's one of my friends."

"Oh... Right..." Felicity bit her lip.

"Wait, isn't one of those birds that we ran by?" Teddy asked.

"Which ones?" Kion asked.

"Uh, kinda white with orange and black legs." Teddy explained.

"Ah, yes," Kion smiled. "Ono's an egret."

"If my research on them is correct, they usually eat bugs." Akito said.

"Timon and Pumbaa should've raised him." Vincent rolled his eyes with a smirk.

"So, all we have to do is look for Ono, that shouldn't be too hard." Estelle said.

"Come with me." Kion nodded.

Bunga wandered and grazed in the grass to come after their flying friend.

"He can't be that hard to find." Vulpix said.

"Hey, where did Bunga go?" Felicity asked.

* * *

Ono was flying in the air and was about to swoop down and attack some prey.

Bunga then suddenly popped his out. "Hey, Ono!"

The egret gasped and crashed in the middle of the grass, avoiding the honey badger.

"Hi, Ono." Akito smiled.

"Oh, you're one of those outsiders who live among those 'human things' with those creatures you call 'Pocket Monsters' or whatever they are," Ono observed logically. "Good to see you and nice to meet you all."

"Kion would like to talk with you about something." Akito said.

"Kion?" Ono looked over to his lion friend.

"You see just about everything, Ono," Kion smiled down to him. "That's why I want to talk."

"So then, he's gonna be the keenest of sight." Larvitar smiled.

"Precisely." Kion agreed.

"Cool." Larvitar smiled.

"Now what?" Felicity asked before she heard chanting from the hippos at the waterhole.

"I bet that's Behste." Kion said.

"Who?" Teddy asked.

"Come on, I'll show ya." Kion smiled. "I already have a position in mind for him."

* * *

They came and watched the hippos as they chanted one name over and over.

"Hey, everybody!" the hippo at the top smiled at all of them. "Who wants a water slide?"

The three hippos cheered before he came.

"Ooh, yeah!" the first hippo cheered.

"Me, me!" the second hippo added.

"Do it, Behste!" the third hippo finished.

"What's he going to do?" Vulpix asked.

"Does he need help?" Akito asked, offering since he was strong for his age.

"No, no, let him do this." Kion replied.

The hippo named Behste pushed his head against a rock which made a huge wave of water cast over and made his hippo friends swim and fly into it like a water slide at a water park.

"Wow." Akito said, surprised.

"Strongest?" Bunga assumed.

"Strongest." Kion confirmed.

"And wettest." Ono muttered as his feathers were dripping wet now. He then flapped his wings to get the water off.

"Ono?!" Estelle shrieked.

"Uh, sorry." Ono replied.

"Who's last?" Larvitar asked.

"I think we need someone fast right about now, but who's the fastest in the Pridelands?" Misdreavus asked.

"Fuli." Kion smiled.

"Fuli?" the others asked.

"Come on!" Kion led them to his fastest friend.

"Well, okay." Akito shrugged.

Simon jumped onto his sister's back, feeling exhausted from walking around.

"Ugh... Okay, I will carry you..." Felicity sighed to him.

"So, where is Fuli?" Larvitar asked Kion.

"We have to look for her." Kion replied.

"I'll help!" Bunga offered, of course.

"Alright." Teddy smiled.

* * *

The cheetah girl was zipping all around and appeared to be in much of a rush than normal. She did not have time to stop and even told Bunga as there were baboons chasing her.

"I'll tie those baboons up." Akito said.

"I see Fuli's a bit occupied." Ono said as he sat on Behste's back.

"Even I can see that, Ono." Kion replied to his flying friend.

Akito flew at super speed and grabbed himself a bunch of vines and then flew back with them.

"Leave these baboons to Akito." Estelle smiled.

"Fuli, this way!" Ono flew over to the cheetah and led her off one way.

The cheetah looked curious of Akito's abilities, but she flew with the egret to safety as the baboons could no longer menace her. Once Fuli was at a safe distance from the baboons, Akito flew in and then began to fly all around them and tied up the baboons so they couldn't chase Fuli anymore.

"Nice save, Akito." Kion approved.

"Totally." Fuli agreed with a smile. "Thanks."

"No problem, hey, why were they chasing you anyway?" Akito asked.

"I told them that I was sorry," Fuli defended. "I wasn't trying to be mean when I said they look funny when they scratch their heads."

"Seriously?" Akito asked.

"Okay, this is everyone." Kion said.

"What do you mean?" Fuli asked.

"I have a meeting that involves all of you," Kion smiled to his interspecies friends. "Trust me, you're gonna love it."

"Yeah." Estelle nodded.

* * *

The cheetah, egret, and hippo look curious, but they listened and met together, away from where the baboons once were.

"Hey, guys," Kion greeted once they got to a new spot to talk about his. "Thanks for meeting with me. I wanted to talk to you because... Well, I need your help."

"What's the kerbubble, Kion?" Behste asked.

"The five of us are the Pridelands' fiercest, bravest, strongest, fastest and keenest of sight," Kion informed. "And that's why I want you all to join the new Lion Guard. Together, we'll protect the Pridelands and defend the Circle of Life."

"Yep." Vincent nodded.

Ono whistled in honor and admiration.

"Well, lick my tail and call me a meerkat!" Beshte commented.

"Hey! My uncle's a meerkat!" Bunga glared at the hippo.

"No offense, Bunga..." Behste replied before looking confused. "Wait! Aren't you a honey badger?"

"He's adopted." Akito whispered.

"Uh, what's that?" Behste asked.

"Never mind..." Akito face-pawed.

"A Lion Guard?" Fuli scoffed to her male lion friend slightly, rolling her green eyes. "Figures. Always the lions lording over the Pridelands. I suppose Simba put you in charge of this little team, Kion?"

"You bet your spots he did!" Bunga defended.

"Yep, it's true." Vulpix nodded.

"Fuli, the Lion Guard needs you," Larvitar urged. "You're the Pridelands' fastest."

"Yeah." Teddy added.

"You got that right," Fuli replied before glancing back to Kion. "And you're supposed to be the fiercest?"

"Well, he is a lion..." Behste spoke up.

"And lions are fierce," Ono added in. "It's kinda common knowledge, really..."

Simon then roared and made gestures to make his hands look like razor paws to tell Kion to show his friends his new roar.

"Simon, I don't think the roar is a gift that Kion is supposed to show off." Estelle whispered.

"Wait, that's a good idea!" Bunga spoke up. "Show 'em the Roar, Kion. Show 'em the Roar!"

"What's Bunga talking about?" Fuli snorted. "The Roar? You think you're somethin' special just 'cause you can roar?"

"Wait 'til you hear it," Bunga smirked. "C'mon, Kion. Show 'em the Roar!"

"Bunga, I'm not sure if the roar is for showing off." Vincent said.

"So what is the deal with your roar?" Behste asked Kion.

"Oh, you totally have to show us, Kion." Fuli smirked.

"Seeing is believing!" Ono encouraged. "Though with a roar, it's more about hearing..."

Kion sighed in defeat. "Okay, fine, I'll show you the Roar, just, uh, stay behind me, I don't want anybody to get hurt."

"Yeah, and give him some space." Akito said.

Kion got into position as his friends came right behind him.

"Groundlings." Ono smirked as he stood on Behste's back as they all had trouble.

"Ready?" Kion looked back to them.

"The lion cubs and Pokemon nodded.

"Okay... This is the Roar..." Kion said before bearing his claws and he whipped his head back, but instead of an almighty roar like against the hyenas, it was a tiny squeak. "What in the Pridelands...?" he then asked himself in disbelief.

"That was... Different." Ono blinked.

"Kion, you call that a roar!?" Fuli laughed.

"That wasn't the roar." Vincent said.

"It was a squeak!" Bunga added in.

"Oh, good, because I didn't think it sounded like a roar." Behste replied to him.

"I've found him, Your Highness!" Zazu suddenly flew over. "Kion is over here!"

"Why was Zazu looking for Kion?" Larvitar asked.

The others shrugged. How should they had known?

"See, Dad?" Kiara said to Simba once they came for Kion. "What did I tell you?"

"Kiara, of course." Estelle whispered.

"Thank you, Kiara," Simba told his only daughter. "You and Tiifu go ahead and track the gazelle. I need to talk with Kion. Alone."

"Yes, Dad." Kiara nodded before walking off with her friend.

"Thank you, princess." Simba nodded to her.

"If you guys will excuse me, I have to have a serious talk with a certain princess." Estelle growled while walking off into the same direction as Kiara and Tiifu.

"Do you want assistance?" Felicity offered.

"No thanks, Felicity, I think I can handle her by myself, even if she has Tiifu or Zuri by her side." Estelle declined.

"Understood." Felicity nodded to her.

Estelle nodded back before going after the lion princess.

"Oh, boy, is Kiara is going to get it now." Akito sighed.


	13. Chapter 13

Kiara and Tiifu were laughing as they were on their way back to the gazelles after telling Simba and Zazu what had happened. Estelle came in front of them, glaring at the lioness cubs, but mostly Kiara in specific.

"Um, can we help you?" Tiifu glanced at Estelle.

"Tiifu, I would like to speak with Kiara alone." Estelle told her.

Tiifu nodded and walked off. "I'll be with the gazelles, Kiki!"

Kiara nodded, then looked to Estelle. "What is it?"

"You are a terrible sister." Estelle glared.

"Excuse me?" Kiara glared back.

"Why did you have to do that to Kion? He finally found every member he needed for the Lion Guard," Estelle said. "If I was in your place, I would not tell my father what Akito was up to, I would have his back and support him."

"Because it's silly," Kiara scoffed. "And it's called the ' _Lion_ ' Guard, not the 'Lion, Honey Badger, Bird, Hippo, and Cheetah Guard'."

"Your father told him to assemble the Pridelands' best and where each of those animals that Kion chose fit the part." Estelle told her.

"Yeah, but he should've assembled lions!" Kiara snorted. "Besides, he thinks he's all that. At least I'm going to be Queen with Kopa when I grow up."

"Fine, but don't blame me when you are in a serious and dangerous situation and need help with no one around to help." Estelle told her before leaving.

"Hmph! The nerve of some animals..." Kiara snorted before walking off the other way to catch up with Tiifu.

Kopa saw and heard everything and where he only sighed at Kiara's selfishness. Estelle muttered about Kiara as she was on her way back to her brothers and cousins. And where she saw Kion walking off, looking rather sad and unsure.

* * *

"What happened?" Estelle asked the others.

"Uncle Simba told Kion that the Lion Guard isn't a game to play with his friends and that only one lion couldn't be enough to protect the Pridelands." Akito replied.

"What is wrong with these lions today?!" Estelle groaned.

"I don't know, but I think it was unfair of him to say that too." Vincent said.

"Same here." Akito said.

"Ugh, I may not have known Uncle Simba as long as Mom, Dad, Aunt Cherry, or Uncle Forte, but that's just so not fair, and Kiara tattled on Kion!" estelle groaned. "This is so not cool!"

"I agree." Kopa said, coming out from the tall grass.

The others looked to Kopa as he came to them.

"Kopa, how long have you been there?" Larvitar asked.

"Oh... Long enough..." Kopa replied.

"Did you overhear my conversation with Kiara?" Estelle asked.

"Yes, I did." Kopa nodded.

"Kopa, I'm really sorry, but your sister hasn't been the best person lately... "Estelle said.

"No, I agree with you, Estelle." Kopa said.

"You do?" Estelle asked.

"I think it's when Dad told her that she was going to be the Queen while I would also be King," Kopa said. "I think the power kinda went to her head... At least she isn't as bad as Zuri."

"Oh, come on, Zuri can't be that bad." Teddy said.

"Try sassy..." Larvitar mumbled with a smirk.

Vulpix laughed to that.

"Indeed." Misdreavus smiled.

The kids glanced to their Pokemon, but Kopa laughed at them.

"Yeah, she's been the worst." Kopa agreed.

"She's like a lioness cub version of Rarity." Akito said.

"I hear that." Felicity agreed with that statement.

"Rarity?" Kopa aksed.

"A fashionista drama queen." Vincent said.

"At least Rarity is nice." Akito defended the unicorn mare.

"Yeah." Estelle added.

Eventually, Simba and Zazu walked by after talking with Kion about the Lion Guard's responsibilities.

"I better go speak with Kion." Kopa said.

"That's good, the best advice and help he needs is a big brother." Vincent agreed.

Kopa nodded before going after Kion to give him advise and give him some help.

"I sure do hope Kion will be okay." Felicity said as she carried Simon on her back.

"Same here." Estelle said.

"I'm sure he'll be okay once his brother talks with him." Vincent reassured.

"Yeah." Akito nodded.

Vincent and Akito then smiled to each other.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile with Kiara and Tiifu...**_

The gazelles were graving peacefully, unknowing that the lioness cubs were crawling away in a hidden spot to stalk after them.

"So, are we gonna hunt today?" Tiifu whispered.

"Be sure to stay low while we're tracking the herd," Kiara quietly advised. "And we need stay downwind, so they don't catch our scent. That's why it's important to watch how the grass moves."

Tiifu nodded, taking that as important advice as they hid in the grass. "Are we going to attack them?" she then asked, looking hopeful.

"No, my dad says we should only take what the pride needs, to keep the Circle of Life in balance," Kiara replied. "If we took down gazelles just to learn how to do it, pretty soon there wouldn't be any left. Then we'd be as bad as the hyenas."

She then saw Mzingo in the sky flying in a certain circle.

"What's Mzingo doing up there?" Kiara wondered as she saw the horrible bird of prey. "Vultures only circle like that when they're expecting to eat."

Tiifu looked to the other side and saw other familiar predators of the Pridelands. "Kiara, look!"

Kiara looked to see Janja and the rest of the hyenas. "Hyenas!" she panicked instantly. "And Janja's leading them."

"There's so many of them!" Tiifu gasped.

"Yeah, and with Mzingo circling over the gazelles, I have a feeling they're up to no good." Kiara replied.

"What are we going to do?" Tiifu asked.

"Go find my dad and tell him Janja and his clan are here," Kiara instructed. "I'll stay here and keep watch."

"Okay, Kiara," Tiifu said before walking off the other way. "Be careful!"

While that was going on, Kopa continued to go after his little brother to talk with him.

* * *

"Dad wanted the best for the Lion Guard," Kion sighed as Kopa followed after him. "And I found them. But now, maybe the best isn't good enough? I just don't understand."

"Kion, you did find the best." Kopa assured him.

"But why did Dad get mad?" Kion asked.

"I guess he thought you were going to assemble lion members into the Lion Guard." Kopa said.

Kion sighed. "It's just not fair..."

"If only Grandfather Mufasa was here." Kopa sighed.

Kion sighed as he felt down in the dumps.

 ** _"Did someone call for me?_** " a deep voice asked.

"Yes, I did, Grandfather." Kopa smiled, looking up to the sky.

"Heyvi kabisa... Are you...?" Kion looked in shock.

 ** _"Yes, Kion, I am your grandfather."_** Mufasa confirmed.

"Hi, Grandfather," Kopa smiled. "How's Grandmother Sarabi?"

 ** _"She's doing just fine."_ ** Mufasa smiled.

Kopa smiled back.

 ** _"I've been watching you, Kion,"_ ** Mufasa told his youngest grandcub. **_"You are about to embark on a great journey, Kion, leader of the Lion Guard!"_**

"Couldn't agree more." Kopa smiled.

"I'm not sure Dad's gonna let me lead the Lion Guard," Kion spoke up to his grandfather. "He's worried that I can't handle it."

 ** _"Kion, Simba is worried,"_ ** Mufasa replied. **_"But he's worried because he loves you. Being leader of the Lion Guard will not always be easy."_**

"Then maybe Dad's right," Kion spoke up. "Maybe I'm not ready to lead. Or use the Roar. I'm not even sure I can control it! First it's super loud. Then it's just a squeak. And I... I don't want to end up like Scar."

 ** _"Don't be afraid, Kion,"_** Mufasa soothed. **_"Trust your instincts. The Roar will be there for you when you need it. And so will I. Until the Pridelands' end..."_**

"Farewell, Grandfather." Kopa waved.

"Grandfather Mufasa, don't go yet..." Kion frowned.

But it was too late as their grandfather went back up to Heaven.

Kion bowed his head.

"It's okay..." Kopa soothed. "I miss him too, but remember what he said."

"Trust my instincts..." Kion replied. "The Roar will be there when I need it."

"Yeah, so you ready to accept your destiny?" Kopa asked.

Kion bowed his head loyally. "Yes... It is time..."

Kopa smiled, happy that his little brother wasn't going to give up.

"Kion! Kopa!" Bunga rushed over to the two of them with the Pokemon. "Janja! The hyenas! They're attacking the gazelles!"

"Yeah, and it looks like they're not playing around!" Teddy added.

"What? Oh, no!" Kion panicked.

"Come on, we gotta do something!" Vulpix panicked.

"Lead the way." Kopa said.

Bunga led the way with the Pokemon to take them back into the main jungle as the sun was starting to set.


	14. Chapter 14

"Mzingo's telling the hyenas which one to target next," Ono commented as he was perched on Behste's back still. "Smart, in a devious sort of way."

"Yeah." Larvitar nodded.

"I don't get it," Akito said. "They've already scored a couple gazelles."

"Shouldn't that plenty for all of them?" Estelle added.

"Yeah, but why are they still attacking?" Vincent wondered.

"Janja and his clan will keep going until the whole herd is dead." Kion rushed over with Bunga, Kopa, and the Pokemon.

"What? That's crazy." Akito said.

"No..." Behste frowned to that.

"Don't they understand the Circle of Life?" Fuli asked.

"They don't care about the Circle of Life," Kion replied bravely. "They're not hunting for food. They want to throw the Pridelands into chaos. And it's up to the Lion Guard to stop them!"

"The Lion Guard?" Fuli asked.

"You mean us?" Ono added in.

"What about what Simba said?" Behste reminded.

"Who cares if you all aren't lions?" Akito said.

"He's right." Kopa agreed.

"Yeah," Kion added in. "I know we're the Pridelands' fiercest, bravest, fastest, strongest,and keenest of sight!"

"That's true." Behste replied with a smile.

"Of course we are!" Fuli also smiled.

"I guess...?" Ono shrugged uneasily.

"You guys are the best." Estelle smiled.

"Yeah!" Bunga sounded ready and brave. "Let's go get those stinkin' hyenas!"

"Hold it, Bunga," Kion put his paw down on the honey badger's tail. "This isn't a game. We need a plan to take on the hyenas. And I think I have one. That is, if the rest of you are ready to join the Lion Guard."

"Yeah." Kopa said.

Bunga smirked, he liked where this was going so far.

"I'm in." Fuli said.

"Ditto." Ono added in.

"Lay it on us, Kion." Behste finished.

"Bunga, you are the bravest." Kion said as he tapped the honey badger's arm.

After his arm was tapped, a mark was placed on it.

"Fuli, you are the fastest." Kion then did the same to the female cheetah.

And the same thing happened on her shoulder.

"Ono, you are the keenest of sight," Kion then did to the egret and the same thing happened, even to the hippo once he got to him. "Behste, you are the strongest."

Ono smiled and held out his wings as he was marked.

"We are the Lion Guard," Kion said proudly and bravely. "And here's what we're going to do..." he then said before telling them all about his plan to stop Janja and the other hyenas from destroying the Circle of Life.

 _'I can't wait to see how this plan goes.'_ Larvitar thought to himself.

* * *

Cherry was in her human form and was sitting on the ledge of Pride Rock with her legs crossed as she looked out into the sunset. "The children have been gone for an awfully long time..." she muttered to herself.

"Cerise, the children haven't come back yet." Forte said.

"That's what I'm saying..." Cherry glanced back at him.

"Maybe we should go out and look for them." Mo said.

"They don't know these jungles like we did when Princess Celestia brought us here." Atticus agreed.

"We better get going then." Mo said.

"On my mark." Forte said.

Cherry, Atticus, and Mo put on their Equestrian medallions from childhood and became adult lion and lionesses.

"We better get going now." Mo said.

"Where do we look though?" Atticus wondered.

Cherry took a deep sniff as she walked out, she sniffed the ground and whipped her head up. "This way, I can smell their blood!" she instructed them before going off in the direction she was told to go into.

"Wahoo!" Mo smiled.

"Come on, we better hurry!" Atticus urged.

Cherry led them to where she could smell their children and hopefully they could make it before any of them would get seriously hurt.


	15. Chapter 15

_**Meanwhile, back with Kiara...**_

"What's taking Tiifu so long?" Kiara sighed impatiently as she hid behind a rock so the hyenas or Mzingo wouldn't see her. "Dad needs to stop this!" She then saw Kion and the others. "What...?"

Kion looked very ready and determined and so did his friends. "'Til the Pridelands' end, Lion Guard defend!"

The five animals then moved out to save the gazelles from Janja and the other hyenas.

"You can do it, guys!" Teddy cheered.

"Believe in yourselves!" Misdreavus called.

"We're cheerin' ya on!" Larvitar laughed in excitement.

"Go, Lion Guard, go!" Vulpix beamed.

"We believe in you all!" Kopa cheered.

"Zuka Zama!" Bunga cheered before jumping on Chungi's back.

"That honey badger is bananas." Vincent said.

"That statement makes no sense...?" Felicity looked confused, then smiled once she thought about it for a minute. "Oh, you mean he is crazy! Yes, yes, he is."

"Yep." Estelle smiled.

"In a good way?" Felicity asked.

"Uh, sure, why not?" Aktio shrugged to his French cousin.

"Yeah." Estelle nodded.

"English is a very strange language..." Felicity sighed.

"Try Swahili." Akito muttered since they were in Africa.

"Swahili?" Felicity asked.

"It's an African language here, a lot of the animals are named after a certain word." Akito explained.

"Cool." Estelle smiled.

"Interesting." Felicity added.

"Yeah." Misdreavus smiled.

* * *

Ono flew in the sky and zipped all around to throw off the villanous vulture. Mzingo growled and glared to him until he got dizzy and fell right into a bush.

"Looking for something, Feather Neck?" Ono smirked to him.

"Good one, Ono!" Teddy smiled.

"Thanks." Ono smiled back.

Three hyenas grinned aggressively and hungrily as they were going after one gazelle.

"Huwezi!" Fuli smirked as she zipped around them. and taunted them with her speed. Nowhere to run that I can't run faster! See what I mean?"

"You go, girl!" Larvitar cheered.

"That's right, keep going!" Kion coached.

"Comin' through!" Bunga smirked as he still rode on the hyena's back with his paws over his eyes, then jumped off as soon as the hyena crashed into the other three like bowling balls against pins.

"And here comes the final blow!" Vulpix cheered.

" **NOW!** " Kion summoned his strongest friend.

"Comin' through, outta the way!" Behste started to charge, passing the gazelles and rammed his head against the hyenas, making them all painfully fly in the air.

"Strike!" The Pokemon cheered.

* * *

Tiifu came with Rafiki and the current Lion King and Queen just as Cherry, Atticus, and Mo arrived.

"Simba, Nala, look!" Rafiki looked with wonder and joy at the fallen hyenas.

"Look at those kids go." Atticus smiled.

"Fascinating." Cherry droned.

Kion ran with his friends as they chased away the hyenas.

"Kion's Lion Guard!" Rafiki laughed in delight. "They have Janja and the hyenas on the run!"

"That's our boy!" Nala smiled proudly.

"Um, but what about the herd?" Mo asked.

"Yeah, it's charging right at Kiara!" Tiifu added with a panic.

"Oh, no!" Nala cried.

"Kiara!" Simba looked worried.

"Oh, no..." Kopa said, worried for his little sister's life.

* * *

One gazelle hit Kiara and knocked her down which injured her paw.

Ono was flying and put his keen sense of sight to spot the lioness cub. "Kion, Kiara's hurt!" he then zipped over back to the lion cub.

"Okay, we need to get her fast." Kion said.

"I'm the fastest there is," Fuli replied, then looked curious of what to do after getting Kiara. "But what do I do once I'm there?"

"Just get me close!" Bunga jumped on the cheetah's back. "I'll take it from there."

"Bunga?" Kion said, confused.

"Don't worry, Kion," Bunga replied with a smile. "This time, yours truly has a plan!"

"Okay... Hurry." Kion then nodded so his sister could be saved.

"This way!" Ono flew up in the air to lead Fuli to where Kiara was.

Kopa really wanted to save Kiara, but had to let Kion and his friends handle this one.

"Zuka Zama!" Bunga called as Fuli ran with him following after Ono.

* * *

"I hope his plan works." Estelle whispered.

"Can't we do something to help?" Felicity pouted.

"No, we have to let them handle this." Kopa told them.

Felicity sighed.

* * *

"Kiara's trapped behind that rock!" Ono alerted.

"I can't get any closer!" Fuli called back.

"This is where I get off, hang on, Kiara!" Bunga called before getting off of the cheetah's back and hopped from gazelle to gazelle.

"Go, Bunga!" Estelle cheered.

Bunga got stuck in one gazelle's horns, but he then kicked his body back and flung against the rock and Kiara looked up at him.

"What's he gonna do?" Vincent wondered.

"Scram ya, goofy gazelles!" Bunga smirked as he then put his tail in the air. "Take this!"

"I suggest we cover our noses/muzzles." Akito said, covering his nose.

The others wondered what he meant by that, but they did as told. Bunga then unleashed his secret weapon which made the gazelles scatter from disgust. Kiara's eyes widened and she put her paw over her nose, looking repulsed.

"Uncle Pumbaa taught me that one." Bunga smiled proudly.

"Oh, right, I forgot honey badgers did that." Estelle said with her nose covered.

"Honey badgers raised by a certain warthog for that matter." Vincent added as he covered his nose.

Kiara actually thanked Bunga, he may be stinky, but he sure was brave.

* * *

"Kion, Bunga and Fuli did it!" Ono flew back to the hippo and lion cub. "Kiara's safe!"

"That's great." Larvitar smiled.

"It most certainly is," Kion agreed. "Ono, have them regroup with us at the edge of the field. It's time to give Janja and his hyenas something to remember."

"Ooh, I think I have a feeling what you have in mind." Larvitar smiled.

Tiifu and Kopa rushed to Kiara and helped her back to Simba and Nala.

"Mom! Dad!" Kiara called.

"Kiara!" Simba put his paw around his daughter.'

"You're safe!" Nala nuzzled her daughter.

"Here, let me fix that." Kopa noticed his sister's injured paw.

Kiara walked up to her older brother, allowing him to lick it so he could heal it.

Kopa nodded to her, then healed up her sore paw. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"I might not have been if it hadn't been Kion and his friends," Kiara admitted. "I guess he knew what he was doing when he picked them."

Nala gave a knowing smile to her mate.

"He did, didn't he?" Simba added with a small smile.

"Yes, yes, he did." Kopa nodded.

"Look!" Rafiki pointed for the lion family. "Look!"

The hyenas were in a distance, but not moving. They then looked as Kion and his Lion Guard were coming for them. Akito and the others stood back to let the Lion Guard handle the hyenas. Simon snarled viciously to the hyenas, wanting to punish them.

"No, Simon, let Kion finish them." Estelle said.

Simon lowly growled and settled himself on Felicity's back.

"Looks like Janja's trying to act all big and mean." Akito said, noticing the leader hyena going up to Kion.

"What else is new?" Vincent scoffed.

* * *

"Well, if it isn't Kion the lion cub," Janja smirked as he approached the youngest of Simba and Nala's cubs with an evil smirk. "You and your friends better leave now, before you get hurt."

"We're the Lion Guard, Janja," Kion glared firmly and bravely. "We defend the Circle of Life. You and your kind are not welcome in the Pridelands. EVER!"

It was suddenly getting dark as clouds cast over them suddenly like a big storm coming. Kion narrowed his eyes and let out a big and mighty roar like he did the first time when he tried to save Bunga from Cheezi and Chunga.

"Wahoo!" Akito cheered.

The roar seemed to quite literally blow the hyenas away. Kion's friends smiled that they had won.

"Zuka Zama, now that's the roar!" Bunga smiled.

"That was awesome!" Teddy cheered.

The hyenas fearfully and cowardly ran away.

"You win today, Kion," Janja glared back at the youngest lion cub. "Next time won't be so easy." he firmly promised before going after his cackle clan.

Kion merely stood bravely and sharply as the hyenas left the Pridelands and returned to the Outlands.

"That's my little bro." Kopa smiled.

"Whoa." Tiifu was really impressed while Kiara was in shock.

"See, Simba? You see?" Rafiki cheered. "He is ready! It is time!"

"Simba?" Nala smirked to her mate.

"Yes, Kion is ready, "Simba finalized. "It is time. Time for the Lion Guard."

"Yes, yes, it is." Atticus nodded.

Kion smiled as he stood bravely with his friends. As it was getting dark, they all returned to Pride Rock.


	16. Chapter 16

There were lionesses around the youngest of Zira's cubs as his training was being intensified about fighting against Simba. Janja came over to the lioness.

"What is it?" Zira glanced down at him.

"You might want to take extra action to be necessary," Janja advised. "Simba and Nala's other cub Kion is in charge of this generation's Lion Guard and he's paired up with a cheetah, an egret, a honey badger, and a hippo!"

"What?!" Zira glared.

Janja visibly flinched at Zira's uproar. "It's true, Zira," he defended. "Kion is just a cub, but he has the roar of the great kings of the past in him!"

"There must be a way to defeat them, Mother." Vitani said, overhearing the conversation.

"We'll find a way..." Zira snarled.

Kovu looked over. "What's the Lion Guard...?"

"It's a long story, just focus on destroying Simba until you're ready." Zira snarled at her youngest cub. "Kion may be the youngest in the Lion Guard, but as MY youngest cub, you're going to be the one to kill Simba for killing Scar!"

"Yes, Mother." Kovu nodded with a frown.

Janja was relieved that Zira was still believing that Simba was the one that killed Scar.

"What can we do, Mother?" Vitani asked.

"The same thing we've been doing since your brother met Simba's daughter, training to the death." Zira sharply replied. "Janja and the other hyenas have the assignment to destroy the Lion Guard."

"We won't let you down." Janja saluted.

"You better not, I hate disappointment." Zira sneered.

"I know." Janja said.

"Good boy..." Zira grinned darkly. "And very soon, your efforts will be rewarded."

"Thank you, Zira." Janja bowed.

"You may go now." Zira allowed.

Janja nodded and went back to his clan to tell them what Zira had told him.

* * *

Kion was praised throughout Pride Rock as it was getting dark and the time to be with family.

"Kion, I should apologize for not taking you guys seriously when you said you were the new leader of the Lion Guard." Kiara frowned.

Simba and Nala approved of this.

"That's okay," Kion smiled, then smirked slightly. "At least I got my life together, right?"

"Yeah, yeah..." Kiara rolled her eyes, then smiled back to him. "I'm really proud of you."

"Same here." Kopa added in.

"Thanks, guys." Kion smiled, nuzzling up to them both.

"Another perfect Circle of Life..." Simba sighed softly. "I really wish Grandfather Mufasa and Grandmother Sarabi were here to see this."

Atticus, Mo, Cherry, and Forte hugged their children, happy that they were alive along with the Pokemon.

"Maman..." Felicity nuzzled against her mother.

"Fliss..." Cherry gently replied, lightly stroking her daughter's dark brown hair.

"We're so glad you dears are okay." Mo said.

"We were worried..." Atticus added.

"We're sorry, we didn't mean to make you guys worry." Estelle frowned.

"We're parents, it's our jobs to worry..." Mo said.

The others frowned.

"Hey, how about a story?" Kopa changed the subject to lighten the mood a little.

"Yes, please." The cubs smiled.

Kopa smiled. "Now, what should I tell?" he then asked, already having a story in mind, but wanted to know what they had to say.

"Well, I guess you could tell us abou your healing powers." Kiara suggested.

"Yeah." Kion agreed.

"Well, I dunno if you're old enough..." Kopa smirked playfully to his younger brother and sister.

"Please." Kiara and Kion begged.

"Well... It's all right with me..." Kopa smirked.

The cubs and Pokemon cheered to this.

Kopa laughed and got settled in a spot to sit as a storyteller. "All right, all right... Well, this is all before I ended up going to that zoo with Ryan and Samson in New York City."

* * *

 ** _Flashback shows us Kopa having himself a lot of fun on his own..._**

 _Sarabi smiled to her grandcub as she lied down next to him as he was at play. Kopa continued to play until he heard someone in pain._

 _"Oh, my..." Sarabi looked worried._

 _Kopa's ears twitched. Sarabi came to her grandcub's side as they went to the source of the voice in pain. And where they saw a young elephant with an injured leg._

 _"Oh, dear..." Sarabi looked concerned._

 _"Please, don't eat me..." the elephant pleaded. "I'm too young to suffer!"_

 _"Don't worry, we're not going to eat you." Kopa assured her._

 _"You're not...?" the elephant asked._

 _"Let's see..." Sarabi came closer to the young elephant. "What seems to be the problem?"_

 _"It's my back left leg, it hurts." The young elephant told them._

 _"Oh, you poor thing..." Sarabi cooed._

 _The elephant sniffled. "It hurts badly and I can't get back home..."_

 _"Maybe it just needs a little licking." Kopa said._

 _"That's a wonderful idea." Sarabi had a knowing smile._

 _Kopa walked over to the young elephant's back left leg and started to lick its wound. Sarabi smiled and didn't even stop him, she seemed to had anticipated this. After licking the wound, it seemed to heal up instantly._

 _"Try standing up now, dear." Sarabi told the elephant._

 _The elephant stood up on all fours and smiled that she was no longer hurt. "Wow, that's incredible!"_

 _"But how?" Kopa asked._

 _"Kopa, we have to talk, you are going to be much more than king someday, you are going to be the Prideland Healer." Sarabi replied._

 _"Prideland Healer?" Kopa asked his paternal grandmother. "How do you mean?"_

 _"Come with me, my boy." Sarabi replied gently._

 _"Okay." Kopa said, following his grandmother._

 _Sarabi led the way back home as the elephant smiled and ran off back home, healed up and feeling 100% better. "The Prideland Healer is extremely rare," she informed her grandson. "It happens at least once every other generation."_

 _"Really?" Kopa smiled. "Cool."_

 _"Yes," Sarabi smiled. "Your great-grandmother, Grandfather Mufasa's mother Uru, was one of them."_

 _"So, what does it mean?" Kopa then asked._

 _"It means you can heal anyone you wish and desire," Sarabi informed. "No matter how old you get, it will always work and you'll help keep the Circle of Life in balance and you may even become a very generous and thoughtful king with your healing powers."_

 _"Rafiki once told me that Great-Grandmother Uru discovered a lake at the western edge of the Pridelands and saved animals from thirst." Kopa smiled._

 _"And he's correct, she really did discover a lake." Sarabi smiled._

 _Kopa smiled back._

 _"Uru was the first official queen, her father had no sons, so she inherited the throne to Pride Rock and then met your Great-Grandfather Ahadi and she became the Lion Queen," Sarabi told more. "Unfortunately, the only wound your great-grandmother could never heal was when her younger son Taka gained a scar and he refused to let her help him due to insane jealousy of his older brother having the crown to become the next Lion King."_

 _"But that's just crazy, why would he be jealous of Grandfather?" Kopa asked._

 _"That is a story for another day, my boy," Sarabi replied. "What's important is that not only will you become the new King of the Jungle, but you will also become the Prideland Healer and you will use your powers and monarchy for good and not evil. Can you promise me?"_

 _Kopa obviously smiled. "Of course."_

 _"Thank you, because if this power were to be used for evil, it would do the opposite." Sarabi told him._

 _"Of course, that makes sense." Kopa replied maturely._

 _"You are going to be a very wise kind brave and strong king when you grow up." Sarabi smiled._

 _Kopa smiled back to his grandmother and stood proudly._

 ** _End of Flashback_**

* * *

"And that's how I learned about my healing powers." Kopa said.

"Whoa..." Kiara and Kion, the human kids, an Pokemon were blown away from the story.

"That's amazing." Teddy said.

Kopa sighed softly. "I sure do miss Grandmother Sarabi though."

"We all do, son." Simba frowned.

"She really was a great woman from what we knew." Cherry said, referring to herself, Mo, Atticus, and Forte.

"Yeah." Atticus nodded.

"What happened to her anyway?" Mo asked. "I-If it's not too much trouble to ask."

"She was killed by two humans." Simba frowned.

"Oh, no..." Forte frowned back.

"Oh, yes..." Nala confirmed.

"It must have been the same humans that brought Kopa to the Zoo." Felicity said.

"I'm pretty sure it was," Simba replied. "I remember that we were both running to save Kopa..." The sound of the gunshot started to echo in his head. " **NOOOO!** " he suddenly yelled out.

"Dad, what's wrong?" Kion asked.

Simba held his head with his paw and looked back to see everyone staring at him, both confused and concerned. "I... I..." he then cleared his throat. "Sorry... I was just... Thinking."

"Was it about that day?" Vulpix asked.

Simba frowned. "Yes, as a matter of fact... It's all my fault..."

"Simba, I told you, you couldn't help it, nothing was your fault, it just happened." Nala tried to soothe her mate.

Forte was about to agree, but then his pocket watch went off like a timer, telling him only one thing. Cherry leaned over his shoulder to see the ticking clock.

"You know what this means, Cerise." Forte looked down to her.

Cherry nodded.

"What is it, Maman and Papa?" Felicity asked her parents.

"Everyone, I'm afraid it's time for us to go back home." Forte said.

"Aww..." the kids and Pokemon groaned in dismay.

"I'm sorry, kids, but we have to go back to where we belong." Mo soothed them.

"So, you guys are leaving?" Kion asked.

"We'll come back again someday." Akito promised.

"Yeah." Vincent smiled.

"We promise." Estelle said.

"Possibly when we're teenagers." Felicity suggested.

"You know where to find us." Nala smiled to their human friends.

* * *

After a few goodbyes, the humans and Pokemon all left the Pridelands and went back home.

"I wish we could've seen more adventures with Kion in the Lion Guard..." Akito pouted.

"Yeah." Larvitar agreed.

"But if we stayed longer, how would we be ready for Enchancia?" Mo prompted, then cupped her mouth playfully. "Oops!"

"You know we'll learn about their adventures when we come back for a visit in the future." Akito said.

"You kids are smarter than I thought!" Mo pretended to be gobsmacked.

"Come on, we better get on the plane before it leaves." Felicity smiled.

"Come along then." Cherry said.

* * *

With that, they gathered together and took their leave. Once they were all in their seats, the plane began to take them out of Africa. The kids and Pokemon were still sad to go, but they eventually fell asleep as they were on the way back home after a long journey.

"I just know that our time in Enchancia will be an adventure for the kids." Mo said.

"I know they'll love it." Atticus agreed as he kissed his wife's knuckles in his own hand.

Mo smiled as they were now on their way back home.

The End


End file.
